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TECHNICAL REPORTS

Waste Management

The Effect of Cattle Slurry Electroflotation Products as Fertilizers on Gaseous Emissions and Grassland Yield

^a Dep. of Plant Biology and Ecology, Univ. of the Basque Country, Apdo. 644. E-48080 Bilbao, Spain
^b Inst. of Agricultural Research and Development, NEIKER. B. Berreaga, 1. E-48160 Derio, Bizkaia, Spain
^c ADE Biotec S.L. Mikeletegi Pasealekua, 2. E-20009 Donostia, Gipuzkoa, Spain

^* Corresponding author (sergio.menendez{at}ehu.es).

Received for publication June 6, 2007. The climatic conditions of the Basque Country (northern Spain) provide the favorable conditions for the growth of grasslands and the development of livestock enterprises. The intensification of the farms is leading to serious environmental risks due to the great generation of manures and slurries and their subsequent inefficient management. Their application involves N losses that can be pollutant. The environmental company ADE BIOTEC S.L. is developing the process called "electroflotation" with the aim of reducing the volume of slurries from intensive livestock farms. The process consists basically of an electrolysis of the slurry catalyzed by iron which leads to the flocculation of the solid particles, giving as a final result a solid and a liquid fraction. The objective of this work was to assess the usefulness of these two fractions as fertilizers. With this aim, the environmental risk of their application was determined regarding gaseous emissions to the atmosphere (i.e., of NO, NH₃, N₂O, and CO₂) and their fertilizer capacity was investigated by determining their effects on grassland yield and N uptake in comparison to the untreated slurry. The untreated slurry and the solid and the liquid fractions were all applied at a rate of 70 kg NH₄⁺–N ha^–1. The application of the products of electroflotation did not affect N₂O and CO₂ losses, being of the same magnitude as those caused by the application of the original slurry. However, after their application, a reduction in NH₃ volatilization losses was induced in the short term and a reduction in NO losses was caused in the long term. The solid and liquid fractions both increased biomass yield with respect to the untreated slurry. The solid fraction even induced a higher N uptake than the liquid fraction and the untreated slurry.

Abbreviations: CO₂, carbon dioxide • DM, dry matter • NH₃, ammonia • N₂O, nitrous oxide • NO, nitric oxide • WFPS, water filled pore space