Abstract:In the present work, we tested the validity of using novel, bio-augmented, aerobic composting with carcass-degrading microorganisms for the ex situ stabilization of carcasses at pilot scale with previously poorly decomposed carcasses excavated from a 3-year old burial site. The significantly decreased chemical oxygen demand (COD, 160,000 mg/kg to 40,000 mg/kg) and inorganic nitrogen species (total nitrogen, 5000 mg/kg to 2000 mg/kg) indicated effective bio-stabilization of carcasses by bio-augmented composting. The subsequent germination assays and the quantitative characterization of potentially pathogenic bacteria using NGS (next-generation sequencing) showed that the burial-composting sequential system with the carcass-degrading microorganisms and mechanical agitation successfully reduced plant toxicity as well as microbial risk to human health, suggesting that the composting by-product is suitable for farming or/and landfill use(s).

Korean river design standards set general design standards for rivers and river-related projects in Korea, which systematize the technologies and methods involved in river-related projects. This includes measurement methods for parts necessary for river design, but does not include information on shear stress. Shear stress is one of the factors necessary for river design and operation. Shear stress is one of the most important hydraulic factors used in the fields of water, especially for artificial channel design. Shear stress is calculated from the frictional force caused by viscosity and fluctuating fluid velocity. Current methods are based on past calculations, but factors such as boundary shear stress or energy gradient are difficult to actually measure or estimate. The point velocity throughout the entire cross-section is needed to calculate the velocity gradient. In other words, the current Korean river design standards use tractive force and critical tractive force instead of shear stress because it is more difficult to calculate the shear stress in the current method. However, it is difficult to calculate the exact value due to the limitations of the formula to obtain the river factor called the tractive force. In addition, tractive force has limitations that use an empirically identified base value for use in practice. This paper focuses on the modeling of shear-stress distribution in open channel turbulent flow using entropy theory. In addition, this study suggests a shear stress distribution formula, which can easily be used in practice after calculating the river-specific factor T. The tractive force and critical tractive force in the Korean river design standards should be modified by the shear stress obtained by the proposed shear stress distribution method. The present study therefore focuses on the modeling of shear stress distribution in an open channel turbulent flow using entropy theory. The shear stress distribution model is tested using a wide range of forty-two experimental runs collected from the literature. Then, an error analysis is performed to further evaluate the accuracy of the proposed model. The results reveal a correlation coefficient of approximately 0.95–0.99, indicating that the proposed method can estimate shear-stress distribution accurately. Based on this, the results of the distribution of shear stress after calculating the river-specific factors show a correlation coefficient of about 0.86 to 0.98, which suggests that the equation can be applied in practice.

Many burial sites were constructed to suppress the spread of foot and mouth disease during outbreak. Defected burial sites were removed when leachate leak is presumed and carcasses were moved to the circular storage tanks. However, carcasses were not decomposed possibly due to low water content, low microbial activities, and poor mixing. In this research, storage tank containing carcasses in it was modified to bioreactor to accelerate stabilization. Liquids with nutrients were added and circulated to maintain the optimum water content while extraneous microorganisms were augmented. Settlement was used as the primary index for assessing stabilization rate, and the consolidation theory was utilized to estimate the expected final settlement. 30% of carcasses is expected to be decomposed and removed from the storage tank for five years of bioreactor operation.