Management of Agr.

&
Food Wastes
(Beng 3164)
By:
G.G. Feyera
1. TYPES & SOURCES OF AGR. WASTES
Definition:
Agricultural Wastes:
These are all types of organic substrates, which arise during the
process of agricultural production.
• Food wastes:
• Wastes which are made up of food scraps, either cooked or uncooked.
• Household wastes:
• Food wastes and garden waste.
 Sources of Agr. & Food Wastes
Sources:
Agricultural wastes:
• Can come from crop farming (leaves, straw, husks, shells and
hulls,) as well as from animal farming (manures, slurries and
animal bedding such as poultry litter).
Food wastes:
• Can come from household kitchen, restaurants, hotels,
cafeteria, food stores, supermarkets and food shops
 Potential Sources of Biomass
• Agricultural residues (wheat straw, corn Stover)
• Energy crops (switch grass, poplar)
• Wood and wood waste
• Municipal solid waste and Food Waste
Agricultural residues are the lowest cost agricultural source
of biomass
Agricultural Residues and Livestock Wastes
Agricultural waste can be subdivided in three main categories:
• Primary wastes: residues remaining in fields after harvest and
allocation, e.g., straw, stalks, cobs, leaves, fronds, and all types of
mixed agricultural crops, not limited to crop waste
• Secondary wastes: (also known as processing wastes) residues
occurring during processing of the product, e.g., slaughterhouse
wastes, milling residues, fruit peels, hulls, husks, shell and bagasse,
filtration and extraction residues.
• Tertiary wastes: residues remaining after the usage of the product,
e.g., organic municipal residues, post-consumer residues, landfill
Use of Agri. Residues and Livestock Wastes
• These are a valuable renewable energy resource and other
materials
• Energy potential of all agricultural residues combined is
equivalent to about 50 billion tons of oil globally (UNEP)
• Secondary residues (wastes) are particularly suitable for
commercial energy generation, because they are usually
available in large quantities at the processing sites without
additional transportation and handling costs
Use of Agri. Residues and Livestock Wastes
• When considering wastes as commercial energy source,
the following aspects need to be thought about in order
to secure a steady supply stream:
• seasonality of crop production
• availability of residues
• harvesting method & livestock keeping systems
• transport distance and cost
• competing uses and possible effects of climate change
Conversion Technologies
 Why convert waste WAB into
Energy/Materials ?
• Reduced carbon emission
a)Due to obviating use of fossil fuels
b)Due to avoidance of open burning and rotting (methane emission)
• Enhanced energy security
• Enhanced access to energy particularly in rural areas
• Reduced problem of management, treatment and disposal
• Additional revenue for farmers
• Job creation
Constraints in converting WAB into Energy
• Dispersed availability spread over wide areas => challenges of
collection
• Usually voluminous material => high transportation cost/weight –
compacting prior to transportation may be required
• Lower calorific value as compared to fossil fuels particularly oil and
gas
• Some WAB has high moisture content (e.g. fruit and vegetable waste)
• Some WAB is easily putrescible (e.g. fruit and vegetable waste)
• Seasonal availability and variations
 Features for considerations when
converting WAB
• Systems required for collection and compacting
• Considerations for future costs of WAB although it may be available free at
present
• Considerations for alternatives if WAB is being used for some other purposes
presently e.g. as domestic fuel, animal feed, mulching for soil etc.
• Cost of transportation in case of large size WAB2E systems
• Disposal of ash particularly for WAB like rice husk
• Flexibility in WAB2E systems to use different WAB
• Storage of WAB to meet the needs during lean seasons
• WAB2E systems to have high turn down ratios and/or systems to store
 2. PROPERTIES OF WASTES
Physico-chemical & Bio-chemical Properties
• Imp’t to know the characteristics of wastes
for:
• Agricultural Producers
• Facility Planners
• Designers
The physical (Physico-chemical) properties
• The physical (Physico-chemical) properties are:
• Weight (Wt.)
• Volume (Vol.)
• Moisture Content (MC)
• Total Solids (TS)
• Volatile Solids (VS)
• Fixed Solids (FS)
• Dissolved Solids (DS)
• Suspended Solids (SS)
 The physical (Physico-chemical) properties
Term Definition Method of measurement Remarks
Weight Quantity or mass Scale or balance  
(wt.)
Volume Space occupied in Place in or compare to  
(vol.) cubic units container of known
volume calculate from
dimensions of containment
facility
Moisture Part of a waste Evaporate free water Moisture content
Content material removed drying in oven at 103°C (%) plus total
(MC) by evaporation & for 24hrs or until constant solids (%) equals
oven drying at (103 weight 100%
°C)
 The physical (Physico-chemical) properties
Total Residue remaining after Evaporate free water by drying in Total of volatile &
Solids water is removed from oven at 103°C for 24hrs or until fixed solids; total
(TS) waste material by constant weight of suspended &
evaporation; dry matter dissolved solids
Volatile Part of total solids Place total solids residue in Volatile solids are
Solids driven off as volatile furnace at 600°C for at least 1 hr. determined from
(VS, TVS) (combustible) gases difference of total
when heated to (600°C); & fixed solids
organic matter
Fixed Part of total solids Weight of residue after volatile Fixed solids equal
Solids remaining after volatile solids have been removed as total solids minus
(FS, TFS) gases driven off at combustible gases when heated at volatile solids
600°C; ash 600°C for at least 1 hr. is
determined
 The physical (Physico-chemical) properties
Dissolved That part of total Pass a measured quantity Total dissolved
Solids solids passing of waste material through solids (TDS) may
(DS, TDS) through the filter 0.45 micron filter using be further
in a filtration appropriate procedure; analyzed for
procedure evaporate filtrate & dry volatile solids &
residue to constant weight fixed dissolved
at 103°C solids parts %
Suspende That part of total Determined by difference TSS is analyzed
d Solid solids removed by between total solids & for volatile &
(SS, TSS) a filtration dissolved solids fixed suspended
procedure solids parts
 Physico-chemical properties
Moisture & Dry Matter
• When expressed in units of (Kg/d) or as a concentration, various
solid fractions of waste (manure, or residue) are measured either
on a wet weight basis (%w.b.) or a dry basis (%d.b)
• Wet basis (%w.b): a %age of the “as is” or wet weight of the
material
• Dry Basis (%d.b): a %age of the dry weight of the material
weight of constituent weight of constituent
Wet basis (% w.b)= Dry basis (%d .b)=
wet weight of sample dry weight of sample
 R/ships of Moisture and Dry Matter
• Moisture is a water content of the waste while dry matter is the residue
remaining after water is removed from waste material by evaporation
 dry weight 
% Dry Matt er     100 VS = TS - FS
 wet weight 
% Moisture  100 - % dry m atter

 100 - %Moistu re   % d .b = oven dry weight of m anure

%w.b = %d. b    % w.b weight of manure at excreted m oisture co ntent
 100   

 %w.b  100 
%d.b =   Weight of Waste (wet ) = Weight of Total Solids (dry) + Weigh t of Moisture
 100 - %w.b 
 Bio-chemical Properties
Term Definition Method of measurement Remarks
Ammonical Both NH3 & NH4 Common laboratory Volatile & mobile
Nitrogen nitrogen Procedure uses digestion, nutrients; may be a limiting
(total compounds oxidation, & reduction to nutrient in l& spreading of
ammonia), convert all or selected wastes & in eutrophication.
g/L nitrogen Recommended methods of
NH3‑N, g/L A gaseous form of forms to ammonium that is manure analysis measures
ammonical released & measured as ammonium nitrogen
nitrogen ammonia

Ammonium The positively   Can become attached to the

Nitrogen, g/L ionized soil or used by plants or
(cation) form of microbes
ammonical
nitrogen
 Bio-chemical Properties (contd.)
Total The sum of organic Digestion process  
Kjeldahl nitrogen & which converts all
Nitrogen, ammonical nitrogen organic nitrogen to
TKN, g/L ammonia

Nitrate The negatively   Nitrogen in this form can

Nitrogen, ionized (anion) form be lost by denitrification,
NO3-N. g/L of nitrogen that is percolation, runoff, & plant
highly mobile microbial utilization

Total The summation of   Macro-nutrient for plants

Nitrogen, nitrogen from all the
(TN, N), %, g various nitrogen
compounds
 Bio-chemical Properties (contd.)
Term Definition Method of Remarks
measurement
Phosphorus Total phosphorus (TP) is a measure of Laboratory Critical in
TP (mg) all the forms of phosphorus, dissolved procedure uses water pollution
SRP or particulate, that is found in a digestion &/or control; may be
(mg/L) sample. Soluble reactive phosphorus reduction to convert a limiting
P (g) (SRP) is a measure of orthophosphate, phosphorus to a nutrient in
P2O5 (g) the filterable (soluble, inorganic) colored complex; eutrophication
fraction of phosphorus, the form result measured by & in spreading
directly taken up by plant cells. P is spectrophotometer or of wastes
elemental phosphorus. P2O5 is the inductive coupled
fertilizer equivalent phosphorus plasma
 Bio-chemical Properties (contd.)
5-day   Extensive laboratory procedure Standard test
Biochemical of incubating waste sample in for measuring
Oxygen oxygenated water for 5 days & pollution
Demand measuring amount of dissolved potential of
(BOD5), oxygen consumed waste
grams of O2
Chemical Measure of oxygen Relatively rapid laboratory Estimate of
oxygen consuming capacity of procedure using chemical total oxygen
demand organic & some inorganic oxidants & heat to fully oxidize that could be
(COD), components of waste organic components of waste consumed in
grams of O2 materials oxidation of
waste
material
 Dissolved oxygen (DO)
• DO is a measure of oxygen availability in waste (mainly liquid
waste and waste water)
• DO measurement indicates the degree of the biodegradability of
the waste
• DO measurement indicates the microbes’ type
(Aerobic/Anaerobic)

 DO is limiting factor in liquid wastes because of the

competition for DO between different microorganisms
 Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)
• BOD is a parameter that describes the amount of biological
degradable organic matter in waste stream.
• BOD is measured by determining the amount of DO consumed
in a waste sample for a given time period under a given
temperature
• The BOD5 is usually used which indicates the amount of DO
required for a decay of organic constituents in the waste stream
within five days at 20oC.
 Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)
╠COD measures the amount of Oxygen needed for
chemical oxidation of organic material contained in
the waste sample
 3.MANAGEMENT OF WASTE
Waste management is systematic handling of waste to reduce their effect
on human health and environment as well as to recover resources from
them.
An agricultural waste management system consists of six basic functions:
• Production
• Collection
• Storage
• Treatment
• Transfer
• Utilization
 Production
• This is function of the amount & nature of agricultural waste generated
• Management is needed if quantities produced are sufficient enough to
become a resource concern.
• A complete analysis of production includes:
• Kind
• Consistency
• Volume record should be kept for data analysis
• Location
• Timing
 Collection
• Refers to gathering of waste from point of origin to a collection point
• The Agr. Waste Management System plan should identify:
• Method of collection
• Location of the collection points
• Scheduling of the collection
• Labor requirements
• Necessary equipment or structural facilities
• Management and installation costs of the components
• The impact that collection has on the consistency of the waste
 Storage
• Storage is the temporary containment of the waste
• The storage period should be determined by the utilization schedule
• Storage function should identify:
• Storage period
• Required storage volume
• Type size, location, and installation cost of the storage facility
• Management cost of the storage process
• Impact of the storage on the consistency of the waste
 Treatment
• It is any function designed to reduce the pollution potential of the waste
• Includes Physical, Biological, and Chemical treatment
• The plan should include:
→ analysis of the characteristics of the waste before treatment
→ determination of the desired characteristics of the waste following
treatment
→ selection of the type, estimated size, location, and the installation
cost of the treatment facility
→ the management cost of the treatment process
 Transfer
• It refers to the movement & carrying of the waste throughout the system
• It includes transfer of the waste from the collection point to the storage
facility, to the treatment facility, and to the utilization site
• The system plan should include:
• Analysis of the consistency of the waste to be moved
• Method of transportation
• Distance between points
• Frequency and scheduling
• Necessary equipment, installation & management costs of the
function
 Utilization
• Utilization includes recycling reusable waste products and
reintroducing non-reusable waste products into the
environment
• Agricultural wastes may be utilized for use as a source of
energy, bedding, animal feed, mulch, organic matter, or plant
nutrients
 4. PRINCIPLES OF WASTE MANAGEMENT
DESIGN AND EQUIPMENT
• AWMS are highly varied, and many alternatives are available.
• Various processes are involved & many of these processes are usually
interdependent.
• An agricultural waste management system design will:
• Describe the management, operation, and maintenance of the waste
from production to utilization
• List the practices to be installed
• Locate the major components on a plan map
• Include an installation schedule
 Guidelines for AWMS Design
• Because of the variety of situations into which AWMS must be
incorporated, no one procedure can be followed to arrive at a system
design; however, the following guidelines may be helpful
1. Determine decision maker’s concerns and needs
2. Determine the characteristics & annual production of the waste
requiring management
3. Determine the alternatives the decision maker is willing to consider
for utilization
4. Determine the landowners’ preferences for equipment & location of
facilities
5. Design the system beginning with production & ending with
utilization
 Waste Management Equipment
• Equipment in each waste management functions
 The end!
“Education is what remains after one has
forgotten everything he learned in school!” Albert
Einstein

Best Wishes!