Bacterial Community Succession in Earthworm Mucus and Sludge Compost and Its Relationship with Environmental Factors

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of adding earthworm mucus on the changes in sludge compost bacterial community structure and its response to environmental factors. The results showed that adding earthworm mucus improved the composting effect of sludge, reducing nitrogen loss and increasing nutrients; nitrogen loss decreased by 5.55%, and potassium and phosphorus increased by 10.23 and 16.28%, respectively. Firmicutes, Chloroflexi, Actinobacteria, and Proteobacteria were the main bacterial phyla in the sludge, with a combined relative abundance of over 60%. The addition of earthworm mucus significantly impacted bacterial community structure and composting activity, increasing the relative abundance of dominant bacteria during the process. Redundancy analysis showed that environmental factors significantly impacted the changes in bacterial community structure during composting. The results indicate that the addition of earthworm mucus increases the relative abundance of advantageous bacteria playing essential roles in sludge composting, enhancing the fertility and maturity of sludge composting products by significantly reducing nitrogen loss and increasing potassium and phosphorus. Based on the response relationship between environmental factors and bacterial communities, the bacterial community structure in sludge composting can be improved by regulating environmental factors (such as pH and moisture content), enhancing the effectiveness of sludge composting.