SUSTAINABLE CONVERSION OF KITCHEN WASTES INTO FUELS AND ORGANIC FERTILIZERS

Recent advances in technology and public awareness on waste management intend interest in rapid biodegradation of potential fraction of solid municipal waste into production of biogas and compost other than land filling due to its high rate of decomposition process. Anaerobic digestion has the advantage of biogas production and can lead to efficient resource recovery and contribute to the conservation of non-renewable energy sources. Anaerobic digestion (AD) of kitchen waste has been recognized as one of the best options for treating waste biomass into alternative fuel. Anaerobic digestion is very sensitive to change in pH value and it is important to maintain pH of 6.5-7.5 for healthy system. The temperature of the slurry inside digester and the ambient also affects the anaerobic digestion process. Methane, as main constituent of biogas is taken as the potential source clean energy. The prime objective of this experiment is to utilize the kitchen waste in a floating drum digester to produce biogas which will meet different energy demand. This technology has demonstrated high flexibility in term of feedstock quality and high efficiency in biogas production per ton of waste processed. The anaerobic digestion of Kitchen waste in a floating drum digester reports to obtain biogas 55-60% production which may be used as fuel due to high methane content. In addition, the residue left after digestion may be used as organic fertilizer to soil due to significant content of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium (NPK).