Food waste is mixed with horse manure for an ideal composting “recipe” in the BioReactor
Food waste composting in Alaska with the invessel BioReactor from XACT has proven successful–just as expected. The 10′ x 32′ BioReactor processes 10 yards of organic waste per day. Striking the right balance of feedstocks with the rotation of the BioReactor and control of the ventilation has resulted in good quality compost production.
This in-vessel rotating drum composter is composting food waste, and interestingly enough, the amendment being used in horse manure. The operators of this facility know that in order to get good quality compost out, they need to put the right blend of feedstocks in. The constraints of the blend consists of: 1) a proper percentage of moisture and 2) the correct proportion of Carbon to Nitrogen. Because the food waste stream on its own did not meet these constraints, there needed to be an amendment added to the food waste.
Any animal manure can be composted.
The horse manure was available and also needed to be disposed of, so this composting facility determined the right blend of these 2 waste streams, and are now indeed, producing very good compost. No less than a triple win!
Exhaust Duct at Discharge End
Using negative ventilation, clean air is drawn into the vessel, and the exhausted air is captured in the duct work located at the discharge end of the BioReactor. The air is directed to a biofilter for filtration before being released to the atmosphere.
The XACT BioReactor on this dairy operation is 10’ diameter by 60’ long. It has to turn 45 to 50 tons of dewatered cow manure 240 times per day, 365 days per year. It had better be built strong!
After taking a look at the robust mechanical characteristics of the XACT BioReactor drum and the heavy duty drive system, this dairy operation was confident in the ability of the XACT system to handle the staggering weights of waste material to be processed daily.
Dewatered cow manure is fed into the vessel by a conveyor. Because the infeed opening is located in the upper left
quadrant of the stationary infeed end, the BioReactor can be filled to 70% capacity. Remarkably, a 7.5 hp variable speed drive turns the BioReactor and its load.
After a 4-day retention period in the vessel, the discharged compost is taken back to
The bedding for the cows is compost made from the dairy manure.
the barn to be used as bedding for the herd. Upon discharge the compost is pathogen free, weed seed free, insect larvae free, and odorless. At this point the compost is about 50% moisture, and therefore as it gets blown into the stalls there is minimal airborne dust. Most importantly, the cows love it as it provides exceptional comfort.
The BioReactor will make bedding to meet your specifications. By adjusting the time that the manure is kept in the BioReactor, you can determine the type of bedding that is produced.
Quick Time: If you choose to simply dry the manure for bedding then the manure is kept in the BioReactor for shorter period of time (18 to 24 hours).
Compost Time: If you choose to convert the manure to compost then the manure is kept in the BioReactor for 72 hours at a temperature of 150o F.