Abstract
This study aimed to co-compost Chinese medicinal herbal residues (CMHRs) as the bulking agent with food waste (FW) to develop a high value antipathogenic compost. The FW, sawdust (SD) and CMHRs were mixed at three different mixing ratios, 5:5:1, 2:2:1 and 1:1:1 on dry weight basis. Lime at 2.25% was added to the composting mix to buffer the pH during the composting. A control without lime addition was also included. The mixtures were composted in 20-L in-vessel composters for 56 days. A maximum of 67.2% organic decomposition was achieved with 1:1:1 mixing ratio within 8 weeks. The seed germination index was 157.2% in 1:1:1 mixing ratio, while other ratios showed <130.0% and the treatment without lime showed 40.3%. Therefore use of CMHRs as the bulking agent to compost food waste at the dry weight ratio of 1:1:1 (FW: SD: CMHRs) was recommended for FW-CMHRs composting.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 182-188 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Bioresource Technology |
Volume | 249 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Feb 2018 |
Scopus Subject Areas
- Bioengineering
- Environmental Engineering
- Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
- Waste Management and Disposal
User-Defined Keywords
- Bulking agent
- Chinese medicinal herbal residues
- Compost
- Food waste
- Maturity