Static composting of cow manure and corn stalk covered with a membrane in cold regions

Abstract

The disposal of livestock wastes is an urgent task in China. Compost is highly regarded for its ability to treat livestock wastes and protect arable land. In particular, some problems of livestock manure in cold regions, such as low efficiency because of low environmental temperature in winter, urgently need to be solved. In order to provide valuable composting information in the cold area at low environmental temperatures, the composting experiments were carried out with cow manure and corn stalk as substrates. The properties and bacterial community of compost samples in different stages were investigated. The electrical conductivity (EC), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), and organic matter (OM) of the final compost were 551 μS/cm, 1.12, 0.77, and 63.5%, respectively. No E. coli or Ascaris eggs were detected. The temperature was the key factor to affect the physical-co-chemical and biological properties. The absolutely dominant genera were Sporosarcina, Virgibacillus, Flavobacterium, and Steroidobacter in heating, high temperature, cooling, and maturing stages, respectively. Also, these bacteria could act as biological indicators during the composting process. Cryobacterium, Caldicoprobacter, Virgibacillus, and Sporosarcina were relatively novel genera in the compost piles in a cold environment. The biodegradation of exogenous substances mainly occurs in the initial and maturing stages. It is proven that composting can be carried out successfully in early spring or later autumn after a harvest.

Influence of Various Additives and Nano Treatments on Corn Stalks Compost Properties and Their Impact on Available Macronutrients in Saline Soil.

“…Nanotechnology can improve the quality and functionality of corn stalk compost by modifying its physicochemical properties, such as pH, electrical conductivity, nutrient content, water retention, and porosity (Chong et al, 2021). Nanotechnology can produce valuable nanomaterials from corn stalk compost, such as carbon nanotubes, graphene, cellulose Nano fibrils, and lignin-containing cellulose nano fibrils (Shi et al, 2022). On the other hand, Organic matter in soil play an important role through building up soil aggregates and enhancing proper soil physical and chemical properties.…”