Effect of airflow on biodrying of gardening wastes in reactors

Abstract

Biodrying consists of reducing moisture by using the heat from aerobic bio-degradation. The parameters that control the process are: aeration, temperature during the process, initial moisture of biowaste, and temperature and relative humidity of the input air. Lawn mowing and garden waste from the gardens of the University Jaume I, Castellón (Spain) were used as a substrate. Biodrying was performed in 10 reactors with known air volumes from 0.88 to 6.42 L/(min·kg dry weight). To promote aeration, 5 of the reactors had 15% of a bulking agent added. The experiment lasted 20 days. After the experiments it was found that the bulking agent led to greater weight loss. However, the increased airflow rate was not linearly proportional to the weight loss.