Feasibility of some treatments for improving the composting of municipal solid waste.

During composting limited degradation of organic matter occurs due to the influence of various factors such as presence of lignin, resistant nature of cellulose, high temperature, etc. During windrow composting, temperature within the waste mass rises and limitation in degradability of organic matter, studies on composting in temperature range of 45-60 degrees C were carried out. With a view to observe the effect of pretreatment for improving composting, Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) was subjected to alkali treatment using lime, and ammonia gas circulation in the waste mass. In practice aerobic condition within the windrow is ensured by turning/mixing the waste 5-6 times during the composting period. In the present study to find out the extent of aerobic condition, the waste mass was composted in the masony brick tank which was provided with honeycomb opening from all the sides. Similarly composting was also carried out on perforated false bottom. Various parameters such as fermentable organic substance (FOS), carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratio and temperature were monitored for the waste mass undergoing composting. The study reveals that experiments with aeration from bottom as well as surface followed by alkaline treatment give better composting performance.