S Wijetunga
*and RSP Karunarathne
Department of Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ruhuna, Mapalana, Kamburupitiya, Sri Lanka
Abstract
The disposal of solid waste is the last operation of solid waste management. Composting can be considered as an attractive onsite waste disposal option for the management of organic solid wastes. The medium-scale waste generators (25-50 kg/day) do not have proper, adaptive technology for the production of compost. Therefore an attempt was taken to design, construct and evaluate a medium-scale composting bin system for the management of organic waste in restaurants and guest houses. The composting structures designed were installed in Kataragama town. Kitchen and garden waste was used as raw material. The first composting system is composed of six bins while the second system had only four bins. The six bins system was operated using only six bins for the total composting period while the other was operated using four bins. The kitchen and garden waste mixture (3:1) was used for the composting. Waste in the first week was added to the first bin and then degrading waste in the first bin was transferred to the next bin in the second week. This procedure was followed until the completion the compost production. Temperature is recorded daily while pH, EC, nitrogen and organic carbon were measured once a week. The selected physical and chemical parameters of the compost were also determined. The quality parameters in both rotation systems are almost similar to the compost standards given by Sri Lanka standard institute. The four bin rotation system is quite complex than the six bin rotation system and therefore, a six bin rotation system can be recommended since it can be operated easily. Based on the results of the study, the designed composter can be successfully used for the production of compost from kitchen and garden waste.
Keywords:
Compost, Compost bins, Kitchen waste, Restaurant waste
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