Pig Manure Treatment Research Articles

Impacts of supplementing chemical fertilizers with organic fertilizers manufactured using pig manure as a substrate on the spread of tetracycline resistance genes in soil

Using pig manure (PM) compost as a partial substitute for the conventional chemical fertilizers (CFs) is considered an effective approach in sustainable agricultural systems. This study aimed to analyze the impacts of supplementing CF with organic fertilizers (OFs) manufactured using pig manure as a substrate on the spread of tetracycline resistance genes (TRGs) as well as the community structures and diversities of tetracycline-resistant bacteria (TRB) in bulk and cucumber rhizosphere soils. In this study, three organic fertilizers manufactured using the PM as a substrate, namely fresh PM, common OF, and bio-organic fertilizer (BF), were supplemented with a CF. Composted manures combined with a CF did not significantly increase TRB compared with the CF alone, but PM treatment resulted in the long-term survival of TRB in soil. The use of CF+PM also increased the risk of spreading TRGs in soil. As beneficial microorganisms in BF may function as reservoirs for the spread of antibiotic resistance genes, care should be taken when adding them to the OF matrix. The PM treatment significantly altered the community structures and increased the species diversity of TRB, especially in the rhizosphere soil. BF treatment caused insignificant changes in the community structure of TRB compared with CF treatment, yet it reduced the species diversities of TRB in soil. Thus, the partial use of fresh PM as a substitute for CF could increase the risk of spread of TRGs. Apart from plant growth promotion, BF was a promising fertilizer owing to its potential ability to control TRGs.

Bacterial communities of an agricultural soil amended with solid pig and dairy manures, and urea fertilizer

Agricultural management practices impact the bacterial diversity of soil but it is unclear how bacterial communities respond to different nutrient sources. This study examined the impacts of manure and granular urea N additions on the diversity and composition of soil bacterial communities. Bacterial communities in an annual cropping system were examined in the short-term (within season) and medium-term (after three successive annual additions) following manure and urea N applications. Soil samples were collected from an experimental field site in fall 2007 prior to imposition of treatments, and post-planting, mid-season, and post-harvest in 2010 following three successive annual applications. Treatments included: solid pig manure (SPM), solid dairy manure (SDM), granular urea N-fertilizer, and unamended control. Pyrosequencing was used to characterize bacterial communities in soil and the manure added. Psychrobacter was the most abundant genus in both SPM and SDM, however it was not detected in soil. Solid pig manure treatments had greater diversity than urea and control treatments and diversity was greatest at post-harvest in fall than post-planting in spring. In 2010, the relative abundances of many bacterial taxa were affected by treatment and sample season but not their interaction. Where Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, Gemmatimonadetes and Bacteroidetes were significantly different for the urea and manure treatments, Proteobacteria declined in relative abundance over the growing season. Communities of manure and urea treated soils converged with progression of growing season. Redundancy analysis showed SO4−2, NO3− and NH4+ concentrations were significant, explaining 44% of the variation observed in bacterial communities across treatments and sample seasons. In conclusion, bacterial diversity increased with manure treatment and with progression of the growing season, the former being not as a result of introduction of taxa from the manure but likely from nutritional resources provided in the organic amendments.

Emission Patterns of Carbon Dioxide & Methane by Liquid Pig Manure Treatments in Paddy Soil*

Emission Patterns of Carbon Dioxide & Methane by Liquid Pig Manure Treatments in Paddy Soil*

Pig manure treatment with housefly (Musca domestica) rearing – an environmental life cycle assessment

The largest portion of a product’s environmental impacts and costs of manufacturing and use results from decisions taken in the conceptual design phase long before its market entry. To foster sustainable production patterns, applying life cycle assessment in the early product development stage is gaining importance. Following recent scientific studies on using dipteran fly species for waste management, this paper presents an assessment of two insect-based manure treatment systems. Considering the necessity of manure treatment in regions with concentrated animal operations, reducing excess manure volumes with the means of insects presents a potentially convenient method to combine waste reduction and nutrient recovery. An analytical comparison of rearing houseflies on fresh and pre-treated pig manure is reported with reference to agricultural land occupation, water and fossil depletion potential. Based on ex-ante modelled industrial scale rearing systems, the driving factors of performance and environmentally sensitive aspects of the rearing process have been assessed. Expressed per kg manure dry matter reduction, the estimated agricultural land occupation varied between 1.4 and 2.7 m2yr, fossil depletion potential ranged from 1.9 to 3.4 kgoil eq and the obtained water depletion potential was calculated from 36.4 to 65.6 m3. System improvement potential was identified for heating related energy usage and water consumption. The geographical context and the utility of the co-products, i.e. residue substrates and insect products, were determined as influential variables to the application potential of this novel manure treatment concept. The results of this study, applied at the earliest stages of the design of the process, assist evaluation of the feasibility of such a system and provide guidance for future research and development activities.

Pig manure treatment and purification by filtration

This study aimed to develop a new, complex pig manure treatment and filtration process. The final scheme, called the AMAK process, comprised the following successive steps: mineralization with mineral acids, alkalization with lime milk, superphosphate addition, a second alkalization, thermal treatment, and pressure filtration. The proposed method produced a filtrate with 95%, 80%, and 96% reductions in chemical oxygen demand, nitrogen content, and phosphorus content, respectively. An advantage of the proposed method was that it incorporated a crystalline phase into the solid organic part of the manure, which enabled high filtration rates (>1000 kg m−2 h−1) and efficient separation. The process also eliminated odor emissions from the filtrate and sediment. The treated filtrate could be used to irrigate crops or it could be further treated in conventional biological wastewater treatment plants. The sediment could be used for producing mineral-organic fertilizer. The AMAK process is inexpensive, and it requires low investment costs.

Evaluation on the external environment cost of pig‐breeding with different size in sichuan province of China

In this article, pig manure treatment methods and technical levels in households were considered, and the market value method and the treatment cost approach were applied to estimate the external environmental cost (EEC) of pig‐farming with different scales quantitatively, reflecting the impacts of pig farming on the environment. Results show that the total EEC for medium‐scale farms is lower than that of range breeding and small‐scale farms. Its data envelopment analysis overall effective years are most, and its average scale efficiency and comprehensive efficiency are the highest, and its unit EEC is the minimal among the four scales. Therefore, range breeding should be narrowed, but the medium‐scale breeding should be moderately encouraged and developed. This is in line with Chinese policy and planning of developing livestock and poultry industry in moderate scale. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 34: 1488–1496, 2015

Toxicity evaluation of pig slurry using luminescent bacteria and zebrafish.

Biogas slurry has become a serious pollution problem and anaerobic digestion is widely applied to pig manure treatment for environmental protection and energy recovery. To evaluate environmental risk of the emission of biogas slurry, luminescent bacteria (Vibrio fischeri), larvae and embryos of zebrafish (Danio rerio) were used to detect the acute and development toxicity of digested and post-treated slurry. Then the ability of treatment process was evaluated. The results showed that digested slurry displayed strong toxicity to both zebrafish and luminescent bacteria, while the EC50 for luminescent bacteria and the LC50 for larvae were only 6.81% (v/v) and 1.95% (v/v) respectively, and embryonic development was inhibited at just 1% (v/v). Slurry still maintained a high level of toxicity although it had been treated by membrane bioreactor (MBR), while the LC50 of larvae was 75.23% (v/v) and there was a little effect on the development of embryos and V. fischeri; the results also revealed that the zebrafish larvae are more sensitive than embryos and luminescent bacteria to pig slurry. Finally, we also found the toxicity removal rate was higher than 90% after the treatment of MBR according to toxicity tests. In conclusion, further treatment should be used in pig slurry disposal or reused of final effluent.

Technological Options to Ameliorate Waste Treatment of Intensive Pig Production in China: An Analysis Based on Bio-Economic Model

Ameliorating waste treatment by technological improvements affects the economic and the ecological-environment benefits of intensive pig production. The objective of the research was to develop and test a method to determine the technical optimization to ameliorate waste treatment methods and gain insight into the relationship between technological options and the economic and ecological effects. We developed an integrated bio-economic model which incorporates the farming production and waste disposal systems to simulate the impact of technological improvements in pig manure treatment on economic and environmental benefits for the case of a pilot farm in Beijing, China. Based on different waste treatment technology options, three scenarios are applied for the simulation analysis of the model. The simulation results reveal that the economic-environmental benefits of the livestock farm could be improved by reducing the cropland manure application and increasing the composting production with the current technologies. Nevertheless, the technical efficiency, the waste treatment capacity and the economic benefits could be further improved by the introduction of new technologies. It implies that technological and economic support policies should be implemented comprehensively on waste disposal and resource utilization to promote sustainable development in intensive livestock production in China.

Economic analyses of pig manure treatment options in Ireland

An economic analysis was performed on treatment options for pig manure in Ireland. Costs were based on a 500 sow integrated pig farm producing 10,500 m 3 of manure per year at 4.8% dry matter. The anaerobic digestion of pig manure and grass silage (1:1; volatile solids basis) was unviable under the proposed tariffs, with costs at € 5.2 m −3 manure. Subsequent solid–liquid separation of the digestate would cost an additional € 12.8 m −3 manure. The treatment of the separated solid fraction by composting and of the liquid fraction by integrated constructed wetlands, would add € 2.8 and € 4.6 m −3 manure, respectively to the treatment costs. The cost analysis presented showed that the technologies investigated are currently not cost effective in Ireland. Transport and spreading of raw manure, at € 4.9 m −3 manure (15 km maximum distance from farm) is the most cost effective option.

Effects of Untreated Pig Manure and Slurry on the Accumulation of Soil NH<sub>4</sub><sup>+</sup>-N and NO<sub>3</sub><sup>-</sup>-N in Large-Scale Pig Farm

The amount of soil inorganic N declined significantly with increasing of sampling depth and sampling time (P < 0.001). Compared with CK, application of untreated pig manure and slurry increased significantly the amount of soil inorganic N by 76.0% and 156.1%, respectively (P < 0.001). Compared with CK, application of untreated pig manure increased significantly the amount of soil NH4+-N by 33.7%, however, application of untreated pig slurry decreased remarkably that of soil NH4+-N by 7.4% (P < 0.001). Application of untreated pig manure and pig slurry increased significantly the amount of soil NO3--N by 86.9% and 198.0%, respectively compared with CK, (P < 0.001). Soil NO3--N accounted for the majority of soil inorganic N irrespective of fertilization treatment or sampling time, its percent were 80.13%, 84.27% and 92.63% in the CK, pig manure and pig slurry treatments, respectively. This result indicated that application of untreated pig manure and slurry increased significantly the amount of soil inorganic N, especially soil NO3--N, which occurred the potential risk of nitrate pollution.

Field balances and recycling rates of micronutrients with various fertilization treatments in Northeast China

Due to their effects on human health, recent research in China has focused on the status of micronutrients in agro-ecosystems. In this study, we analyzed the concentrations of available micronutrients in cropping systems, their recycling rates in the feeding-composting cycle, and their field balances. Our results showed there were significant differences in the concentration of available micronutrients among treatments, with micronutrients found highest in the NPK + M (recycled pig manure) treatment. The recovery ratio of feed stuffs and bedding materials by a feeding-composting cycle was 25%, which was lower than the residual ratio of organic material that was decomposed for 1 year. The recycling rate of Zn, whose concentration was the lowest compared with that of other elements, was about 80%, while the recycling rates of Fe, Mn and Cu were between 85 and 90%. Micronutrient inputs by mineral fertilizer were lower than those of manure. Outputs were determined by crop yield and significantly differed among the treatments. The micronutrient contents from atmospheric deposition were 28–68 and 4–11 times greater than mineral fertilizers and manure, respectively. The balances of micronutrients were positive in all treatments, while excesses were lower in the NPK and CK treatments compared to other treatments. Since the pool of micronutrients is large, it may take hundreds of years to alter the concentration of micronutrients after reclamation. The recycling of nutrients had a positive effect on the balance of soil micronutrients, but we observed no significant changes in total micronutrient concentrations after reclamation.

Impact of long term fertilization on soil water content in Haploborolls

Soil water content under no fertilizer (NF), fertilizer (F) (N:30; P<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub>: 45 kg/ha), and fertilizer plus pig manure (FO) (N:30; P<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub>: 45 kg/ha; pig manure 15 000 kg/ha in 2003; and 30 000 kg/ha in 2004 and 2005) treatments was measured using neutron probe instrument for a period three years in a long term field experiment in order to investigate the impact of different fertilization treatments on Haploborolls soil water content. Fertilization had significant effects on the soil water content. FO treatment had greater soil water content in 10 cm depth than F treatment with average 9.9% increase (P < 0.05) but lower than NF treatment; however, in the depth from 30 to 90 cm, there was no water content difference between F and FO treatments. Treatment with organic amendments reduced total soil water content on the long term experiment basis. Across the three years, no fertilizer treatment had total soil water content higher by 1.2% and 3.1% than fertilizer treatment and fertilizer plus pig manure treatment within 10 to 210 cm soil profile in most of the months, respectively.

Discrimination of Farm Waste Contamination by Fluorescence Spectroscopy Coupled with Multivariate Analysis during a Biodegradation Study

The persistence of potential tracers of dissolved organic matter (DOM) generated from farm waste-amended soil was investigated by fluorescence spectroscopy coupled with classification and regression tree (CART) and principal component analysis (PCA) during a short-term (8 days) to midterm (60 days) biodegradation study. Pig manure (PM), cow manure (CM), wheat straw (WS), and soil alone (SA) treatment inputs were used. Waste amendments were potential sources of higher DOM concentrations. PCA revealed the DOM quality differences between farm wastes and soil alone as well as a significant shift observed from the biochemical to the geochemical fluorescent fraction in SA and PM treatments. The tryptophan:Humic-Like ratio and tryptophan zone were the potential discriminators of recent and midterm pollution by farm wastes. Integral intensities of the Fulvic-Like zone and region III discriminated the PM from CM and WS during the 60 days. CART analysis showed 90 and 100% potential for farm wastes discrimination from soil during P1 and P2, respectively. The prediction successes were 72 and 57% for PM from other wastes and 60 and 100% for WS during both periods. Fluorescence spectroscopy in combination with CART analysis can be a nondestructive innovative method for monitoring susceptible farm waste contamination.

Nanofiltration and reverse osmosis of pig manure: Comparison of results from vibratory and classical modules

The use of membrane technology is a good possibility for the concentration of manure into a small volume that can be transported to the fields. The disposal of manure often requires preor post-treatment with respect to environmental legislation. Membrane processes would be a good way to achieve these requirements. In pressure-driven membrane processes, microfiltration and ultrafiltration are usually efficient in concentrating the nutrients associated with particles, such as phosphorus, but for other constituents, e.g. ammonia and potassium, the retention requires nanofiltration (NF) or reverse osmosis (RO). In this study, two different membrane processes, a classical cross-flow (3DTA) and a vibratory shear-enhanced process (VSEP) were compared as regards the reduction of the total volume and the dry matter from pig manure. Two NF and two RO membranes were used. The fluxes were compared during the tests of pretreated manure concentration. Each composite membrane was tested with regard to the membrane, gel layer and porous resistances. It was found that the gel layer was much lower in the case of the VSEP, because of the high shear-enhanced forces on the membrane surface during the experiments. Our results indicated that NF and RO were suitable for pig manure treatment.

Effect of different fertilization systems on rice yield components and their stability

Rice yield components including productive tillers per hill, average yield per panicle and yield per hill under different fertilization systems were researched into in a long-term nutrient recycling experiment at the Changshu National Agroecological Experimental Station (31°33′ N, 123°38′ E). The indices for yield-related traits were collected in a single rice growing season and regression analysis used to determine the quantitative relationship between nutrient content in the rice plants at booting stage and the yield components and their stability. Results of the study show that nitrogen fertilizer favors productive tiller number increase, but dramatically inhibits per panicle average yield. Average productive tillers per hill under N treatment are 4.2, 0.9 and 0.7 higher than under CK, NP and NPK respectively. The application of nitrogen along with phosphorus eliminates the conflict between productive tillers and per panicle average yield and therefore boosts per hill yield of rice. Productive tillers and per hill yield of rice increase with the addition of pig manure, but per panicle average yield does not significantly change. Only the stability of per hill productive tillers is significantly affected by chemical fertilizer treatments. The other two yield components are not affected by chemical fertilizer or pig manure treatments. Average coefficient of variation of productive tillers under CK, N, NP and NPK are 19.5%, 17.9%, 18.3% and 22.9% respectively. Thus potassium fertilization increases productive tillers CV. There is a good fit of the linear regression model for yield-related trait indices and N and K contents of plants at booting stage. The average CV of productive tillers is directly related with K content of rice plant.

Pig manure treatment by organic bed biofiltration

Research and development work to optimize the BIOSOR™-Manure, a biofiltration process for pig manure treatment, have been realized on the site of a piggery (Île d'Orléans, Québec, Canada) using a 400 m 3 biofiltration system. Despite strong variations in BOD 5 (10,000–20,000 mg/L), in SS (10,000–20,000 mg/L), in TKN (2000–3800 mg/L) and in P tot (500–900 mg/L), the BIOSORÔ system was able to maintain an overall pollutant removal performance averaging > 95% for the BOD 5, > 97% for the SS, > 84% for the TKN and > 87% for the P tot. By reducing the raw manure's organic load by more than 95%, the process eliminates over 80% the odour intensity coming from the production installations, the storage, the transportation and the spreading of the manure. The results obtained show that the BIOSOR™-Manure process is an efficient, simple and performing technology bringing a global solution to pig manure problems.

Innovative process scheme for removal of organic matter, phosphorus and nitrogen from pig manure

Disposal of pig manure often requires treatment with respect to environmental legislations. In this study different processes for reduction of the organic matter (anaerobic digestion, effluent separation by decanter centrifugation, membrane microfiltration, post-digestion in upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor, partial oxidation), nitrogen (oxygen-limited autotrophic nitrification–denitrification, OLAND) and phosphorus (phosphorus removal by precipitation as struvite, PRS) from pig manure were tested. Results obtained showed that microfiltration was unsuitable for pig manure treatment. PRS treated effluent was negatively affecting the further processing of the pig manure in UASB, and was therefore not included in the final process flow scheme. In a final scheme (PIGMAN concept) combination of the following successive process steps was used: thermophilic anaerobic digestion with sequential separation by decanter centrifuge, post-digestion in UASB reactor, partial oxidation and finally OLAND process. This combination resulted in reduction of the total organic, nitrogen and phosphorus contents by 96%, 88%, and 81%, respectively.

The growth and Cu and Zn uptake of pakchois (Brassica chinesis L.) in an acidic soil as affected by chicken or pig manure

In a pot experiment, pig manure (PM) and chicken manure (CM) were applied to an acidic soil at application rates of 2%, 4% and 8% (W/W) to evaluate their effects on the growth, Cu and Zn uptake and transfer of five cultivars of pakchoi (Brassica chinesis L.). The results showed that alkaline manures significantly increased the biomass of pakchois, and also pH and electrical conductivity of the soil. Both 0.01 M CaCl2 and 1.0 M NH4NO3 salt solutions predict the Zn transfer from soil to pakchois well, but not for Cu. For the cultivar Siyueman, the transfer factors of Cu (or Zn) in the PM treatments were higher than that in the CM treatments. In our experiment the Cu and Zn concentrations in pakchois did not exceed the Chinese Food Hygiene Standard, but more attention should be paid to heavy metals risk on pakchois at lower soil pH and salt impairment by manures application.

Effect of using different types of organic animal manure on plankton abundance, and on growth and survival of Tilapia rendalli (Boulenger) in ponds

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of using different types of organic manure on the plankton abundance, and growth and survival of Tilapia rendalli juveniles in ponds. Fish weighing 18.15±0.44 g were stocked into 12, 20 m2 ponds at 2 fish m−2 (40 fish pond−1). There were three replicate ponds per treatment (chicken manure, cattle manure, pig manure, and no-manure as a control). After 84 days the T. rendalli in the chicken manure treatment were significantly larger and had higher net annual yields than those in the cattle manure, pig manure and no-manure treatments. The survival rates were not significantly different across the treatments. Significantly higher amounts of chlorophyll a and higher numbers of zooplankton were found in ponds fertilized with the chicken manure treatment. The overall results obtained in this study suggest that the use of chicken manure produces better results than cattle and pig manure treatments on unfertilized ponds.

Bacterial-feeding nematodes enhance root growth of tomato seedlings

We prepared soil with greater populations of bacterial-feeding nematodes, compared to a normal field soil, to determine the effects of bacterial-feeding nematodes on the root development of tomato seedlings. Soil mixed with either pig manure or rice straw was placed in a mesh bag, and then surrounded by an outer layer of unamended soil. Nematodes were able to migrate through a 1 mm diameter mesh bag into the outer soil, thus giving greater populations than in soil surrounding a control treatment of a 5 μm diameter mesh bag, through which nematodes cannot migrate. After 28 and 35 days incubation, respectively, the outer soil contained a nine-fold increase in nematode numbers in the pig manure treatment and a six-fold in the rice straw treatment, compared to control soil. The increased nematodes were mainly bacterial-feeders, accounting for 98.2% of total nematodes in the pig manure treatment and 90.5% in the rice straw treatment. Tomato seedlings were grown in the outer soil and root parameters (total length, average diameter, total surface area, numbers of forks and numbers of tips) determined after 5 and 10 days growth at 20 °C. We found that the tomato seedlings grown in the soil containing more bacterial-feeding nematodes developed a highly branched root system with longer and thinner roots.