Composting process as an alternative method for the disposal of sewage sludge and organic fraction of municipal solid waste

This paper attempts to propose a method for the neutralization of municipal sewage sludge and organic fraction of municipal solid waste. Sewage sludge from municipal wastewater treatment plants, organic fraction of municipal solid waste (MSW), grass and sawdust as a bulking agent were used in this study. Four mixtures with variable additions of sewage sludge and grass were composted in lab-scale bioreactors during 30 days. The obtained reduction of the ratio C/N indicates that the composting process ran correctly, however, it didn’t reach the optimal values for composts (in some samples the temperature was insufficient). This work showed that the co-composting of organic fraction of municipal solid waste and sewage sludge can be the ultimate way of converting these resources for environmental use. However, additional investigations are required in order to optimize the organic and nitrogen degradation of compounds via the co-composting process.

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