Inactivation of Botrytis cinerea during thermophilic composting of greenhouse tomato plant residues.

The effectiveness of in-vessel thermophilic composting on the inactivation of Botrytis cinerea was evaluated. The bioreactor operated on an infected mixture of tomato plant residues, wood shavings, and municipal solid compost (1:1.5:0.28). Tap water and urea were added to adjust the moisture content and C:N ratio to 60% and 30:1, respectively. Used cooking oil was added as a bioavailable carbon source to compensate for heat losses from the system and extend the thermophilic composting stage. The controlled thermophilic composting process was successful in inactivating B. cinerea. During all experiments, the average reactor temperature increased gradually, reaching its peak after 31 h of operation. Temperatures in the range of 62.6-63.9 degrees C were maintained during the thermophilic stage by the intermittent addition of used cooking oil. The results of the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test indicated that the initial concentration of B. cinerea in the compost samples (14.6 mug of dried mycelium/g of compost) was reduced to 12.9, 8.8, and 2.4 mu/g after 24, 48, and 72 h of thermophilic composting, respectively. Plating assay indicated that the mold was completely inactivated in samples after 48 h of thermophilic composting. No significant reduction in B. cinerea was observed during the transient phase (first 30 h of rising temperature) because the temperature reached the lethal level of 55 degrees C after 23 h, thus allowing only 7 h of exposure to temperatures higher than 55 degrees C during this phase. The relatively short time required for complete inactivation of B. cinerea was achieved by maintaining a constant high temperature and a uniform distribution of temperature and extending the duration of the thermophilic stage by the addition of the proper amount of bioavailable carbon (used cooking oil).