Mass and energy balance for a rotating-drum composting plant

Eades, Paul; Banks, Charles; Heaven, Sonia; Walker, Mark

Abstract

The Bioganix in-vessel composting system at Leominster, UK, received 33 515 t of waste from January 2006 to December 2007, of which 9200 t was source-segregated biodegradable municipal waste (BMW). The process operated with a nominal in-vessel retention time of 4 days. Mass balances indicated 17·1% reduction (excluding reject materials). The process was estimated to consume 186 kWh/t of waste processed as electrical energy for static plant and a further 9·6 kWh as diesel for mobile plant. Taking into account transportation and application of the compost, the estimated consumption was ~560 kWh/t of waste processed, calculated as primary energy (including electrical conversion). 96·7% of this was for processing; transportation consumed 1·3% and application 2·0%. The mixed waste compost had a high nitrogen content but, for a typical source-segregated biodegradable municipal waste, the energy potentially offset from nitrogen fixation is likely to be considerably less than that used in processing.

Citation

Eades, P., Banks, C., Heaven, S., & Walker, M. (2011). Mass and energy balance for a rotating-drum composting plant. Proceedings of the ICE - Waste and Resource Management, 164(3), 151-159. https://doi.org/10.1680/warm.2011.164.3.151

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Online Publication Date: Sep 2, 2015
• Publication Date: 2011-08
• Deposit Date: Mar 22, 2021
• Journal: Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Waste and Resource Management
• Print ISSN: 1747-6526
• Electronic ISSN: 1747-6534
• Publisher: ICE Publishing
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 164
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 151-159
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1680/warm.2011.164.3.151
• Keywords: Natural resources ; Recycling & reuse of materials ; Waste management & disposal
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/3742532