Resistance to forced airflow through layers of composting organic material

•The pressure gradient may be represented by the Shedd, Hukill & Ives and Hunter models.•The Shedd method was statistically considered that which best represented the studied phenomenon.•The static pressure drop of airflow increased as a power of thickness of the material layer.•The composting p...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Waste management (Elmsford) 2015-02, Vol.36, p.57-62
Main Authors: Teixeira, Denis Leocádio, Matos, Antonio Teixeira de, Melo, Evandro de Castro
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aeration
Aerobic process
Air Movements
Airflow
Biochemistry
Composting
Degradation
Impact tests
Mathematical models
Models, Theoretical
Organic materials
Organic solid waste
Pressure
Recycling
Soil
Static aerated pile
Static pressure
Static pressure drop
Waste Management - methods
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Summary:•The pressure gradient may be represented by the Shedd, Hukill & Ives and Hunter models.•The Shedd method was statistically considered that which best represented the studied phenomenon.•The static pressure drop of airflow increased as a power of thickness of the material layer.•The composting process contributed to a reduced pressure gradient of airflow.•Sugarcane bagasse caused the greater pressure drop of airflow passing through the coffee husks. The objective of this study was to adjust equations to estimate the static pressure gradient of airflow through layers of organic residues submitted to two stages of biochemical degradation, and to evaluate the static pressure drop of airflow thought the material layer. Measurements of static pressure drop in the layers of sugarcane bagasse and coffee husks mixed with poultry litter on day 0 and after 30days of composting were performed using a prototype with specific airflow rates ranging from 0.02 to 0.13m3s−1m−2. Static pressure gradient and specific airflow rate data were properly fit to the Shedd, Hukill & Ives and Ergun models, which may be used to predict the static pressure gradient of air to be blown through the organic residue layers. However, the Shedd model was that which best represented the phenomenon studied. The static pressure drop of airflow increased as a power of the material layer thickness and showed tendency for decreasing with the biochemical degradation time of the organic material.
ISSN:0956-053X
1879-2456
DOI:10.1016/j.wasman.2014.12.003