A Study on the Effects of Salinity and Washing in on Aerobic Composting of Food Wastes

This study was performed to estimate the effects of salinity and washing of food wastes on temperature, pH, and salinity in aerobic composting of food wastes. Weight ratios of food wastes to water in washing were 1:0(Control), 1:1(W-1), 1:2(W-2), 1:3(W-3) and 1:4(W-4), respectively. Ratios of food wastes to wood chips in reactor of Control, W-1, W-2, W-3 and W-4 were 5kg:5L, respectively. Reactors were operated for 24 days with 1 hour stirring by 1 rpm and 2 hours aeration per day. The increase in the ratio of food wastes to water used in washing resulted in the decrease of the highest reaction temperature and the elongation of the high temperature reaction period. The lowering of the ratio of food wastes to water used in washing resulted in faster pH increase The final salinities of Control, W-1, W-2, W-3 and W-4 were 0.95%, 0.73%, 0.65%, 0.57% and 0.41%, respectively.