Downward aeration promotes static composting by affecting mineralization and humification

Zejin Zhang; Xin Li; Xi Hu; Song Zhang; Anning Li; Yongcui Deng; Yibo Wu; Shiyu Li; Rongxiao Che; Xiaoyong Cui

doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125592

Downward aeration promotes static composting by affecting mineralization and humification

Bioresour Technol. 2021 Oct:338:125592. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125592. Epub 2021 Jul 14.

Authors

Zejin Zhang¹, Xin Li², Xi Hu², Song Zhang³, Anning Li², Yongcui Deng⁴, Yibo Wu⁵, Shiyu Li², Rongxiao Che⁶, Xiaoyong Cui⁷

Affiliations

¹ School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China; College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Sino-Danish College, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
² School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China.
³ Institute of International Rivers and Eco-security, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China.
⁴ Nanjing Normal University, 210023 Nanjing, China.
⁵ Ningbo University, 315211 Ningbo, China.
⁶ Institute of International Rivers and Eco-security, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China. Electronic address: cherongxiao@ynu.edu.cn.
⁷ College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.

PMID: 34298334
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125592

Abstract

A composting experiment with sewage sludge and green waste was conducted to explore the effects of aeration directions (i.e., upward and downward) on static composting systems. The compost properties, including humification indexes and organic matter loss rate, and microbial diversity during the composting, were determined. Results showed that the downward aeration promoted the homogenization of temperature and moisture of the static composting system, thereby stimulating microbial metabolism and accelerating mineralization and humification. Microbial community profiles significantly changed among the composting phases. The humification dynamics were significantly correlated with the relative abundance of multiple microbial functional groups. However, no significant effects of aeration direction on the microbial community profiles were observed. The findings indicate that downward aeration is promising to improve the quality of static compost production, by stimulating microbial metabolism rather than altering microbial community profiles.

Keywords: Bacterial community; Excitation-emission matrix-parallel factor analysis; Fungal community; Organic waste; Sewage sludge.

MeSH terms

Composting*
Sewage
Soil
Temperature

Substances

Sewage
Soil