Composting and Thermal Energy

Systems for Manure, Bedding

and Biomass Handling
Session: Making and Saving Energy
on the Farm
Northeast Renewable Energy
Conference – August 26, 2008
Brian Jerose, WASTE NOT Resource Solutions
(802) 933-8336 and jerose@together.net
Hot, Hardworking Decomposition

157 F, 9/7/06
 General Concept and Questions
• Composting is taking place on many farms,
by businesses and municipalities but not universally adopted
• Rising energy costs, awareness of soil quality, and efforts to
reduce waste promote some composting applications also odor and bedding concerns
• Can improving composting system cost-effectiveness include
recovery of heat energy from decomposition?
• Is this a viable option compared to expanding or creating new
liquid manure pits?
• Can composting be efficiently integrated into greenhouse
operations and reduce heating costs?
• Is this viable practice for food processors, slaughterhouses,
communities and institutions? Use of hot water to preheat process water or heat radiant floors (shops, barns, etc)
 What is Composting?
• The process of rapid decomposition of raw organic
materials such as food scraps, leaves and manure in
a primarily aerobic (with oxygen) manner.
• Can be managed to encourage thermophilic (heat-
loving) microorganisms that generate temperatures
from 120 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Encourages
rapid degradation of raw materials and the
destruction of weed seeds and pathogens.
• Can also occur at lower temperatures and/or
utilizing earthworms (red wigglers or Eisenia
foetida) as decomposers
Windrow Turner
Compost Ingredients/ Feedstocks
• Anything biodegradable (breaks down into water, carbon
dioxide or humus)
• Typically nitrogen rich ingredients include food scraps,
fresh grass clippings, manure, seaweed and food
processing waste.
•Carbon rich ingredients include leaves, wood chips, old
hay, sawdust, wood shavings, and paper residuals.
• No plastic, metal, glass or other inert substances.
 The Compost “Recipe”
• Carbon (C) to Nitrogen (N) ratio ideally is 30 C: 1 N
(dry weight basis)
• Typical volume estimate 3 parts brown (carbon-rich) to
1 part green (nitrogen-rich)
• Homogenize, stir or mix as much as possible (connect the
browns and greens)
• Starting moisture should be about 60-65% (squeezing a
handful of compost should get one drop of water - no less,
no more)
 Building Your Compost Heap
• Think structure - let air and moisture in and out of your
compost, think fluffy not packed.
• Good structure imparts porosity, mixing in wood chips or
other coarse materials leaves space to “breathe”
• Fine sawdust or paper may seal or crust over the outside of
compost pile, blocking air and moisture
• A good mix of particle sizes is ideal and if you can’t mix the
materials regularly, ALWAYS COVER YOUR GREENS
WITH BROWNS (make a compost sandwich)
• Minimum 3’ x 3’ x 3’ to generate heat from pile
 Troubleshooting Problems
• Odors - Too much green, needs more browns and/or pile
may be too moist. If mixing in more browns is difficult,
cover outside of pile with more browns. Addressing odor
problems should address most issues with scavengers.
• Cold compost - too little or too much moisture and/or
high amount of browns to greens. Mature compost is cool
but looks like forest floor soil/duff and has earthy scent.
• Moisture leaking from pile - too moist, need more browns
• COMPOST HAPPENS - You’re just encouraging faster
decomposition without nuisances.
 Why Compost?
• Recovers valuable resource of manures, bedding, spoiled
feed and converts residuals into a valuable soil amendment
• Avoids wasteful practices pushing into ditches or over
banks, energy used to chop/agitate in pit and haul as liquid
• Potential economic savings from reducing fertilizer, labor
and hauling/spreading costs
• Composting above 130 F destroys pathogens (E.Coli,
Salmonella, Johnes) and most weed seeds
•Can conserve nitrogen versus N losses in liquid application
if certain practices are used (high C:N, reduced turning…)
• 50-90% of manure N is lost in liquid handling systems
 Why Compost?
• Recovers valuable resource and converts residuals into a
valuable soil amendment
• Avoids “wasteful” practices of landfilling where food
scraps only turn into leachate, methane, other odors and
seagull food; or incineration making smoke and ash
• Potential economic savings from reducing trash disposal
and manure handling and hauling costs
• Nature’s recycling! One of best examples to teach
recycling and microbial ecology in action.
Compost Six Months From Manure
 Vermont Case Study
• January 2004, met with Terry Magnan to discuss options for
using composting manure to reduce heating costs
• Discussed needs of farm for animal housing, manure
management, labor and site constraints, etc.
• Applied for USDA NRCS Conservation Innovation Grant
• Received $196,000 from USDA, $50,000 from VT Agency of
Agriculture, $50,000 from Agrilab, division of Acrolab of
Windsor, Ontario in-kind engineering, monitoring equipment and
patent license for nearly $500,000 in planning to construction
• VT NRCS Alternative Manure Management Program grant to
monitor P, N, C, heat generation and uses in erosion control
 Farm Background
• Terry and Joanne Magnan, Town of Sheldon, VT
• Diamond Hill Custom Heifers, since 1991 have no milking
only calves and heifers, boarded for 15 local dairy farms
• Up to 2000 animals, own and rent 1000 acres in towns of
Sheldon, Enosburg, Berkshire and Fairfield
• 900 acres hay, 100 acres corn
• Multiple barns with different housing for various animal age
groups, resulting in varied manure and bedding characteristics,
typically calf manure drier with more bedding
• Goal of reducing liquid manure to 50% of total volume
Diamond Hill Custom Heifers
 Project Timeline
• Composting Barn and Calf Barn constructed in 2005
• Composting for heat energy recovery starts January 2006
• Compost nutrient and organic matter sampling, compost
utilization sites started April 2006
• November 2006 compost production and compost product
utilization tour
•November 2007 – Vermont Alternative Manure Management
project final report
• August 2008 – on-going monitoring of system performance
 Planning and Design
• Terry Magnan, Diamond Hill Custom Heifers, Sheldon, VT
• Brian Jerose, WASTE NOT Resource Solutions, Fairfield, VT
• Joseph Ouellette, Agrilab, Windsor, ONT
• Bruce Fulford, City Soil and Greenhouse, Boston, MA
• Aaron Robtoy, Bakersfield, VT
• Many others supporting in answering numerous questions
Agrilab Demonstration, Ontario
 The Company

• Agrilab Technologies Inc. is a member

of the Acrolab Group of companies.
• Acrolab was established in 1948, and is
a world leader in providing innovative
technological heat transfer solutions.
 City Soil and Greenhouse
• Operated 2 greenhouses at Revision House, in Boston, MA
since 2002 – provided regional example
• Greenhouse 1 loaded with municipal chipped brush and
leaves, bedded horse manure and food scraps
• Greenhouse 2 growing salad greens and other vegetables in
raised beds (soil and mature compost mixture)
• Air blower draws hot moist vapor through active compost
from Greenhouse 1 into raised beds of Greenhouse 2
• Conducted additional outreach and trials in New England via
SARE grant project
Developing Compost Feedstock
Recipes
Compost Feedstock Recipes
Other Feedstocks
Mixing
Mix Loaded on Aeration Floor
Galvanized Metal Gutter Covers
 Thermal Energy Utilized
• System monitoring has tracked 1 to 5 million Btu/day of utilized
thermal energy
• 150 to 800 tons of “active” compost at one time
• Radiant floor slabs - largest demand for heat is for two 120’ x 8’
concrete sections in new calf barn
• Preheats hot water for eventual 155 F, process water (tap water)
well water intake at 45 F
• Summer peak temperature 142 F, winter preheater 75 to 80 F
• Fuel use tracked for winter 2006 vs. winters 2007 and 2008
• Capacity to increase Btu yield – exhaust vapor for greenhouse
 Heat Energy Equivalents
• 3,000,000 (3 million) BTUs produced equally over a 24
hour period can be expressed as:
1) 125,000 BTUs/Hour continuous
2) 125,000 Kilojoules/Hour continuous
3) 125,000 X 0.293 = 36.6 Kilowatts/Hour continuous
4) 36.6 X 1.34 = 49 Horse Power/Hour continuous
5) 3mil BTUs/day /100,000 = 3 Therms/Day continuous
6) 125,000 /3.96 = 31,566 Kilocalories/Hour continuous
After 10 – 20 weeks active
composting, curing in shed
 Behind
Barn after
construction
Views
east
behind
barn
During and after
compost
applications
 Revegetation
fastest on
conservation mix
plot, second on
compost plot,
third on seed only
plot, fourth on
bare no treatment
plot
 Plots now
vegetated, most
dense growth on
conservation
mix, then
compost, then
seed only, then
bare (mostly
weeds)
 Compost as Soil Amendment
• Used on farm fields, gardens, exposed slopes, lawns, in
agricultural, commercial, municipal and residential areas.
•Builds soil organic matter, provides slow steady release of
macro and micronutrients
• Improves soil porosity, root penetration, moisture and
nutrient holding capacity.
• Boosts microorganisms in soil - promotes fertility
through soil organisms making nutrients available to
plants versus a chemical input
• Imparts soil-borne disease resistance
What compost does for the soil

GOOD TILTH
 Other Composting Heating
Applications/Opportunities
• Greenhouses, Farm Buildings, Hot Water
• Institutions, Municipal/Commercial/Industrial
Composting
• Feb. 2007 calculations of 200,000 Btu/hour and
1000 Btu/hour per “active” ton of compost
• Sizing of heating systems based on peak demands
– composting energy system provides consistent
moderate intensity heating
 100 Holstein Scenario

• 6 tons manure/day (10% solids)

• 3 tons/day bedding/amendments to achieve proper
porosity, C:N, and moisture content (40% solids)
• 52 tons/week could equate 220 tons/month for
“active” or hot composting with 100% composting (no
liquid storage or raw field application)
• 220,000 Btu/hr with current system performance –
should be improved with optimized designs
 30 Jersey Scenario
• 100% manure composted could yield 45,000 Btu/hr
• 1.5 tons of manure and bedding/day equal 45
tons/month
• 45,000 Btu/hour potential
• Additions of calf manure, spoiled feed, other drier
amendments can reduce amount of bedding necessary
• Other Scenarios?
 Payback Period
• Tracking fuel savings for 2007 – 2400 gallons, then $4800
@ $2.20/gallon, 2008 – 3100 gallons @ $3.19 = $10,000
• Dedicated heat exchanger components, patent license,
estimated $10K to $50K – depending on scale
• Most practical/economical when integrated with need to
change manure storage and management to composting
• Aerated composting system can be labor efficient vs. other
manure management practices to justify infrastructure costs
• Savings from reduced manure handling/spreading and
ventilation provided initial financial justification
 Return on Investment
• Diamond Hill Custom Heifers – Total Project Cost $450,000,
Magnan Investment $125,000, Annual Savings and New Revenue
$46,500
• Total Project without cost-sharing – 6.86 years
• Magnan Investment with cost-sharing – 2.69 years
• Segregated ROI for Isobar system (w/o cost-share) – 5 years
• Quinn (calf/heifer farm) without cost-sharing – 4.02 years
• Quinn proposal with cost-sharing – 2.24 years
How to Evaluate Potential Farm
Savings and Energy Value
• Establish baseline energy costs for farm heating and
manure handling activities
• Project existing and future costs for operating in current
mode or alternative handling systems
• How can thermal energy be used to improve efficiency or
add value to farm activities?
• Is compost more valuable on-farm to build soil organic
matter, conserve manure N or as additional farm product
for sale?
What to consider when looking at
composting or other manure
handling options
• What are current labor costs, availability and reliability?
• What is complexity of manure handling system to operate?
• Where are other value streams for producing energy
(electrical or thermal), soil fertility or bedding?
• Can multiple technologies be integrated – anaerobic
digestion then composting?
• Ability to invest in capital expense of facilities for reduced
on-going operating costs?
 Obstacles to Implementing
Composting to Energy Systems
• Need to integrate with animal housing and bedding systems,
farm equipment, farm energy use and cropping practices –
most recent investments are for liquid manure handling
• Limitation of bedding availability or other carbon-rich
feedstocks – hay, straw, shavings, wood chips, sawdust
• Microbe husbandry – attention is required to create optimal
conditions for C:N, moisture and aeration in good composting
• Calculating return on investment requires calculating
savings or values in multiple farm activities and practices
Old Technology/New Technology
• Reports of Chinese using compost heat over 2000 years ago
• Increased knowledge of composting science and heat
transfer systems
• Potential to integrate with other benefits of composting and
compost use
• Alternative to exclusively handling manure in lagoons/pits
• Opportunity for considerable refinement in efficiency
 Contact Information
• Brian Jerose, Partner, WASTE NOT Resource Solutions;
1662 Pumpkin Village Road; Enosburg Falls, VT 05450;
(802) 933-8336; jerose@together.net;
www.farmcomposting.com
• Joseph Ouellette, President; Acrolab and Agrilab
Companies, Windsor, Ontario, (519) 944-5900;
jouellette@acrolab.com; www.acrolab.com
• Terry and Joanne Magnan, Diamond Hill Custom Heifers;
4692 East Sheldon Road; Enosburg Falls, VT 05450; (802)
933-2071; dhch2000@verizon.net;
www.diamondhillcustomheifers.com