Types Of Agricultural Wastes Research Articles

Exploring antioxidant potential of agricultural by-products: a systematic review.

Agricultural waste sourced from various activities that occur along the agricultural supply chain including post-harvest, processing, and consumption processes, can pose a threat to ecosystem balance and community welfare. Data shows that agricultural by-products have the potential to be utilized because they contain antioxidant compounds. This systematic review study aims to identify and assess the antioxidant activity of agricultural by-products through various extraction methods. This systematic review collected literature in the last 10 years (2013-2023) from Google Scholar, Semantic, and Scopus-indexed articles with the help of Publish or Perish. Using the help of boolean operators (AND) and (OR) in searching using keywords. The steps applied adapt the PRISMA method (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses), including identification, screening, eligibility, and inclusion. Literature collection data shows that the dominant processing method used is the solvent extraction method to determine the antioxidant value of various agricultural waste by-products. Followed by microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) and ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) methods. A wide range of antioxidant activity values were found depending on the type of agricultural waste and processing technique. One potential utilization of agricultural wastes rich in antioxidant content is as additives in formulations in the cosmetic industry. Agricultural waste by-products have high potential of antioxidant content, depending on the type of waste and extraction method. The dominant agricultural waste used is by-products from the fruit group. The utilization of agricultural waste that is rich in antioxidants has the potential to be utilized in the cosmetic industry.

Preparation of slow-release carbon source fillers from agricultural solid waste for efficient nitrogen removal from municipal wastewater: Removal performance, microbial community and mechanisms

In this study, five types of agricultural wastes, were used as alternative materials for slow-release carbon source, alternative materials were prepared as slow-release carbon source fillers (ZCF) using a no-sintering method, and studied by leaching elements, carbon release, nitrification and denitrification potential, and bio-attachment performance, walnut shell-based filler was found to have better performance in terms of persistence of carbon release, impact stability, carbon biochemistry and green safety. When HRT was 8 h in H-O, 12 h in H-A, and R was 100 % and C/N was 2 in H-Z BAF, the average concentrations of effluent NH4+-N and TN were only 0.4 and 12.2 mg/L, which achieved the high efficiency and economy of H-Z BAF under low C/N conditions. The newly prepared ZCF had a rougher outer surface, a uniformly distributed flocculent structure and numerous microporous channels on the inner surface, and the carbon source inside the filler was degraded or transformed by microorganisms, as compared to the filler in H-O and H-A at the later stage of use. The abundance of nitrifying bacteria, denitrifying bacteria was increased in the H-Z BAF, and that functional CAZymes were enriched and involved in the degradation of cellulose and hemicellulose, can be efficiently utilized by microorganisms. This study provides technical support for the development of cheap, stable and efficient slow-release carbon sources and their application in denitrification of municipal wastewater plant tailwater.

Cultivation of earthworms and analysis of associated bacterial communities during earthworms’ growth using two types of agricultural wastes

Earthworm cultivation can effectively promote the resource utilization of agricultural waste. The efficient utilization of agricultural waste by earthworms mainly depends on the microbial communities in the guts. This study used silkworm excrement and cow manure as substrates for earthworm cultivation and investigated the associated bacterial communities during earthworms’ growth. The survival rate of earthworms remained above 89% after 21 days of feeding with the two substrates. Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Firmicutes constituted the predominant bacterial communities in earthworm growth, accounting for over 81% of the relative abundance in both guts and vermicompost. The bacteria richness and diversity in the foregut and midgut of earthworm were lower than those in the hindgut. The prediction function of intestinal bacterial communities of earthworms cultured with two substrates mainly involved biosynthesis, decomposition and energy production.

THERMOGRAVIMETRIC ANALYSIS OF PULVERIZED RICE HUSK WASTE CATALYTIC COMBUSTION WITH NATURAL ZEOLIT

Rice husk is a type of agricultural waste that generated from rice production activities. The number continues to increase in line with the increasing food needs of the people in Indonesia. This study aims to determine the effect of the addition of natural zeolite as a catalyst and to determine the effect of natural zeolite mass percentage variation in the mixture on rice husk waste catalytic combustion by using the thermo gravimetric analysis method. The results of this study show that there is an effect of adding natural zeolite catalysts with the mass percentage of natural zeolite variations on the combustion characteristics and activation energy of each mixture. Increasing the mass percentage of natural zeolite catalysts can affect the reaction process become faster and minimize the effort required, but it was found that if the amount of natural zeolite catalyst is too much, it only adds to the heating load which causes slower reaction. The mixture of rice husks with 10% natural zeolite catalyst is the most optimal mixture because it has the lowest required activation energy value and the combustion reaction phases are achieved at a lower temperature than 5% and 15% mass percentage variations.

Bibliometric Analysis: Use of Agricultural Waste in the Generation of Electrical Energy

Scientific reports have diversified enormously in the various thematic areas of the scientific world, generating errors and biases in the searches and directing the various investigations. For this reason, this article provides an approach, from the point of view of bibliometric analysis, to reveal the trends of agricultural waste for its potential use as fuel in generating electrical energy. This research has used the programs RStudio, VosViewer, and Excel for the compilation and analysis of data, whose data were extracted from Scopus during the period from 2013 to 15 March 2024, filtering all types of publications that were not original articles and English language. Scientific reports have found that biodigesters are constantly evolving, improving valves, studying and analyzing different types of agricultural waste, and using microorganisms to accelerate the fermentation process of agricultural waste. The terms biogas (330 occurrences), anaerobic digestion (214 occurrences), and agriculture (212 occurrences) were the words with the highest occurrences. At the same time, the author that stood out was Liu Y., who had an H index of 6 and 117 citations in his six articles published in the Scopus database. Moreover, China (1900 citations) was the country with the highest citation numbers, followed by the United States (1060 citations) and India (967 citations). The designs of biogas production increase efficiency and can increase biodigesters’ performance. The research also reveals the different types of development and trends that stood out and emerged in the last decade, such as the authors who have had the most impact on this topic that has recently emerged and the countries that have obtained the most significant number of publications on the topic.

Utilization of Agricultural Waste for the Cultivation of Pleurotus Mushrooms in Thailand

Thailand is one of the major agricultural production countries in the world. Therefore, large amounts of agricultural waste are generated as by-products of the agroindustry. The wastes are usually discarded or burnt, resulting in environmental pollution. The main goal of this research was to evaluate the use of agricultural waste for mushroom cultivation. A total of 15 mushroom isolates were recovered from mother spawns and basidiocarps. They were screened for their cellulolytic enzyme activity on Czapek agar using carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) as the sole carbon source. Two isolates of the oyster mushrooms, Pleurotus pulmonarius PP6 and Pleurotus ostreatus PO3, produced the best enzyme activities. To observe the mycelial growth on agricultural waste, the two oyster mushroom candidates were cultured in jars containing five different types of agricultural waste: corn husk, rice straw, coconut meal, coconut husk and sugarcane bagasse, and the jars were incubated at 25°C for six weeks. The results show that both isolates grew best on coconut meal, producing very densely packed mycelia. Meanwhile, corn husk and rice straw were also good sources for oyster mushroom cultivation. This study shows that these three substrates have the potential to be utilized in mushroom cultivation on a commercial scale.

Degradation of straw-based wick drain and its effect on consolidation

The recycling of straw, a type of agricultural waste in a large volume, has considerable attention, and attempts have been made to fabricate straw-based wick drains in soft clay ground improvement. Although it has low carbon emissions and is environmentally friendly, the biodegradation process of wick drains and its effect on consolidation need to be further investigated. In this study, the biodegradation process was examined by subjecting straw and plastic wick drains to degradation tests in soils from the prototypical project for comparison. The results show that the degradation of straw wick drains exhibits a decrease in the discharge capacity and tensile strength, and the degradation percentage of both exceeds by 30% after 240 days, whereas the mass loss is only 10%. After degradation, the abundance of cellulose-degrading bacteria increases by 3–10%, respectively. The biodegradable behavior of straw wick drains is achieved by the rapid community succession of multiple degrading bacteria and the population growth of cellulose-degrading bacteria. Afterwards, the theoretical calculation model considering the drain degradation was performed to understand the consolidation procedure, suggesting the effective substitution of straw wick drains.

HARNESSING GRAPE POMACE: NUTRITIONAL ASPECTS, RECOVERY AND EXTRACTION TECHNIQUES FOR HEALTH BENEFITS

Nowadays, grapes represent the third most widely cultivated horticulture crop in the world. For the Republic of Moldova, grapes have been recognized as the most culturally important crop. About 70% of the total production of Moldovan grapes is processed in the wine industry, 30 % of which are by-products that tend to be not fully exploited, being frequently burned or landfilled. Due to its chemical composition, grape pomace is one type of agricultural waste that can be used to achieve sustainability in the food business by converting waste into useful resources. In this sense, the pomace chemical composition, with demonstrated antioxidant potential, is a viable source of biologically active compounds, as a cheap agricultural waste product, for the development of functional products. This paper is an overview of the characteristics and potential uses of wine industry waste, namely grape pomace and explores the implementation of eco-friendly technologies that have the potential to convert this perishable material into a unique ingredient, unveiling fresh opportunities for the grape pomace's utilization and consumption.

Comparison of Thermochemical and Physical Properties of Some Indonesian Agricultural Wastes

Indonesia is one of the largest agricultural countries in the world. Two main agricultural sub-sectors in Indonesia are food crops and estate crops. Agricultural waste is one of the biomass energy sources that has the potential to replace fossil energy sources. The weakness of energy sources from different types of agricultural waste is their heterogeneous thermochemical and physical properties. The objective of the experimental study is to compare the thermochemical and physical properties of fourteen selected agricultural wastes in Indonesia. The thermochemical properties that were compared are high heating value (HHV), percentage of lignocellulosic components, and ultimate analysis, while that of physical properties are the grindability, hydrophilicity, and proximate analysis. A material with high fixed carbon, low moisture, and low ash contents is preferred as a solid fuel source. Based on the experimental results of proximate analysis, coffee husk has the highest fixed carbon content (20.85%). Empty fruit bunch has the lowest moisture content (7.04%). Palm kernel shell has the lowest ash content (1.82%). Based on the results of the ultimate analysis, the palm kernel shell is the sample with the highest carbon content (49.42%), while the empty fruit bunch has the highest hydrogen content (6.69%). The coconut shell was identified as containing the lowest nitrogen (0.14%) and sulfur 0.052%). Peanut shell is the easiest to grind, while empty fruit bunch is the hardest to grind materials. The hydrophilicity of sugarcane trash is lower than other samples (9.34%). Coconut shell has the highest percentage of cellulose (47.21%). Several pairs of agricultural waste have similar properties that can be used as considerations for handling management and co-utilization.

Biochar production under different pyrolysis temperatures with different types of agricultural wastes

The main aim of this study is to determine the physical and chemical properties of biochar synthesized from different materials (straw rice, sawdust, sugar cane, and tree leaves) at different pyrolysis temperatures (400, 600, and 800 °C). The physical and chemical properties such as moisture content, water holding capacity, bulk density, and porosity; and pH, electrical conductivity (EC), organic matter, organic carbon, total nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, sodium, and sulfur were determined, respectively. The results show that the biochar yield decreased with increasing pyrolysis temperature, and the values of the analyzed properties varied depending on the type of biochar and pyrolysis temperature. The moisture content ranged from 1.11 to 4.18%, and the water holding capacity ranged from 12.9 to 27.6 g water g−1 dry sample. The highest value of bulk density (211.9 kg m−3) was obtained from sawdust at a pyrolysis temperature of 800 °C. The porosity values ranged from 45.9 to 63.7%. The highest values of pH and EC (10.4 and 3.46 dS m−1) were obtained from tree leaves at a pyrolysis temperature of 800 °C. Total organic matter ranged from 66.0 to 98.1%, total organic carbon ranged from 38.3 to 56.9%, and total nitrogen ranged from 0.4 to 1.9%. The highest values of phosphorus and calcium content (134.6 and 649.0 mg kg−1) were obtained from sugar cane at a pyrolysis temperature of 800 °C. The magnesium, sodium and sulfur content had ranges of 10.9–51.7, 1124–1703 and 3568–12,060 mg kg−1, respectively.

Isolation and screening of biosurfactant producing yeast from soil contaminated with oil

The present study was aimed to isolate yeasts from soil samples contaminated with oil and their ability to produce biosurfactants. Five samples were collected from different sites of Baghdad, thirty four isolate of yeasts were obtained from these contaminated soil. Nineteen isolates from them were able to produce biosurfactant according to the diameter of clearing zonein solution test, while other isolates gave negative results. The yeast isolates which gave positive result werequantitatively screened on the basis of emulsification index and surface tension, secondary screening showed that isolates SD5, SB8 and SK10 giving the highest yield of biosurfactant in their cultures and the values of emulsification index were 45.7%, 56.9% and 53.4% respectively. Also, the biosurfactant of isolates SD5, SB8 and SK10 were exhibited maximum ability to reduce the surface tension of medium to 38.2, 27.1 and 30.8 mN\m respectively. Finally selected isolates SD5, SB8 and SK10 were identification on the basis of morphological and biochemical tests, the results revealed that isolates were identified as Saccharomyces cerevisiaeSB8, Candida glabrataSD5 and Candida glabrata SK10 respectively.The three most active isolates were tested to see their ability to produce biosurfactant in BH medium supplemented with four types of agricultural residues (rice bran, banana peel, wheat bran and corn cobs) as a source of carbon compared with BH medium with glucose. All isolates showed good ability to produce biosurfactant in liquid medium with different types of agricultural wastes and also with glucose. Candida glabrata SD5 exhibited highest activity for biosurfactant production when grown on agricultural wastes and glucose depend on the values of emulsification index and surface tension, whilethe wheat bran as a substrate gave best stimulation for biosurfactant production compared with other agricultural wastes.

The effect of bokashi fertilizer from agricultural waste contain Trichoderma to improve soybean production, growth, and resistance against plant diseases

This study focus on the development agent of biological control based on technologies used Trichoderma mix with bokashi fertilizer from agricultural waste. This study arranged in a randomized block design (RBD) in a factorial pattern, factor I is a type of decomposer microorganism that consisted of three treatments (M1: EM4 decomposer, M2: Trichoderma decomposer, M3: EM4 decomposer and Trichoderma), and factor II is the type of agricultural waste, consisted of four treatments (L1: soybean plant waste, L2: rice crop waste, L3: corn plant waste, and L4: a mixture of various agricultural waste) so there were 12 combinations of treatments with three repetitions. The observations data have been analyzed used variance and continued with the Duncan multiple distance test (DMRT) at the 95% confidence level. The result showed the application of bokashi from agricultural waste using EM4 and Trichoderma can increase plant growth, plant production, and resistance from plant pathogenic both independently and interactively, especially for Cucumber Mozaic Virus (CMV) and Soybean Mozaic Virus (SMV). In the other hand, the experimental study confirms that the Legume agricultural waste (L1), EM4 decomposers, and Trichoderma (M3) are the best combination to increase the growth, production, and durability of soybean crops either by main-treatment or interaction treatment compared to other treatments.

Physical and Chemical Properties of Silver-Containing Nanosorbent Obtained from Rice Straw Biochar

Improving the quality of natural water purification is one of the priority areas in the research conducted by scientific communities in the field of ecology. At the same time, the task is to achieve the optimal efficiency of the technological process at a low cost. The solution, in this case, is the use of materials necessary for cleaning, in particular, sorbents from natural raw materials, including agricultural waste. At present, a sufficient number of research results have been published confirming the effectiveness of the sorbent from biochar from various types of agricultural waste, as well as from rice straw biochar (RSB). This article proposes an innovative method for modifying biochar from rice straw, which allows the use of the material as a sorbent with a disinfecting effect. The method consists of processing biochar in a process activation plant (PAP) using a solution of silver nitrate, which is released in the form of a carbon nanomaterial with attached metallic silver ions on the surface of biochar particles. The biochar impregnated with a solution of silver nitrate was contacted with ferromagnetic particles under electromagnetic influence, followed by thermal treatment of the sample. The resulting silver-containing sorbent was subjected to a physicochemical analysis of its properties; photographs of electron microscopy were also obtained, and a bacteriological analysis of the effectiveness of the sorbent on natural water was carried out. The analysis was carried out on three indicators—total microbial count (TMC), total number of coliform bacteria (TCB), and thermotolerant coliform bacteria (TCB). According to the research results, the sorbent showed its disinfecting properties and confirmed its high efficiency (90.48–100%).

Addition of Fermented Cassava Leaf Flour in Rations to Percentages of Native Chicken Carcass and Non-Carcass 10 Weeks Olds

AbstractSuper free-range chicken, which is currently a very lucrative new business opportunity because the demand for free-range chicken meat has increased significantly due to high consumer demand. The type of agricultural waste that can be used as ration material is cassava leaves. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of using fermented cassava leaf flour in the ration on the percentage of carcass and non-carcass chicken super aged 10 weeks, to find out what percentage level of use of fermented cassava leaf flour in the ration is able to provide the best results on the percentage of carcass and non 10 weeks old free-range chicken carcass. The research design used was a completely randomized design (CRD) which consisted of 5 treatments namely: L0 (without the addition of cassava leaf flour), L1 (ration containing 2.5% fermented cassava leaf flour), L2 (ration containing 5% starch) fermented cassava leaf), L3 (ration containing 7.5% fermented cassava leaf flour), L4 (ration containing 10% fermented cassava leaf flour). Each treatment was repeated 3 times. The use of cassava leaf meal in the ration had no significant effect (P>0.05) on carcass weight, non-carcass weight, carcass percentage and non-carcass percentage. The use of cassava leaf flour in the ration tends to be higher at the level of use of flour containing 5% fermented cassava leaf flour, but does not have a significant effect.

Development of sustainable alkali-activated binder for building products using sugarcane bagasse ash: A review

Industrial waste-based alkali-activated binders (AABs) can be a sustainable alternative to the cement industry. As the manufacturing of cement is accounting for over 8% of the world's CO2 emissions, using industrial byproducts in the production of alkali-activated construction materials (i.e. mortar, brick, and concrete) might reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The main chemical component of AAB is alumina-silicates, which is essential for alkali activation. Potassium or sodium hydroxide and silicates are common activators. The production of cement is minimised by completely replacing it with AAB using a polymerization method. Polymerisation process uses alkali activators to activate the aluminium–silicate binder and produce a 3D polymeric chain that helps with strength development. The emphasis of the current review is the use of Sugarcane Bagasse Ash (SCBA) in construction materials that have been alkali-activated. Burning bagasse, a type of agricultural waste, yields SCBA, which may be used to create AAB in place of cement. The use of various supplementary cementitious materials in combination with SCBA and their influence on the mechanical characteristics was analysed. Moreover, the influence of supplementary activator, activator concentration, mixing proportions and curing methods (ambient, heat, water etc.) were critically reviewed. The results of various researchers' analyses of SCBA using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) technology was also evaluated in order to study the properties, content and morphology of bagasse ash. The sustainability and profitability of alkali-activated materials are greatly affected by the choice of alkali activator. Common activators include chemicals like sodium or potassium hydroxide or silicate, which have a relatively high carbon emission and are costly. As a result, several agro-industrial by-products have been studied as alternative alkali activators. Utilization of industrial waste-based materials will not only solve the waste disposal issue but also reduce CO2 emissions.

Comparative investigation on heterotrophic denitrification driven by different biodegradable polymers for nitrate removal in mariculture wastewater: Organic carbon release, denitrification performance, and microbial community.

Heterotrophic denitrification is widely studied to purify freshwater wastewater, but its application to seawater wastewater is rarely reported. In this study, two types of agricultural wastes and two types of synthetic polymers were selected as solid carbon sources in denitrification process to explore their effects on the purification capacity of low-C/N marine recirculating aquaculture wastewater (NO3 --N 30 mg/L, salinity 32‰). The surface properties of reed straw (RS), corn cob (CC), polycaprolactone (PCL) and poly3-hydroxybutyrate-hydroxypropionate (PHBV) were evaluated by Brunauer-Emmett-Teller, Scanning electron microscope and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Short-chain fatty acids, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) equivalents were used to analyze the carbon release capacity. Results showed that agricultural waste had higher carbon release capacity than PCL and PHBV. The cumulative DOC and COD of agricultural waste were 0.56-12.65 and 1.15-18.75 mg/g, respectively, while those for synthetic polymers were 0.07-1.473 and 0.045-1.425 mg/g, respectively. The removal efficiency of nitrate nitrogen (NO3 --N) was CC 70.80%, PCL 53.64%, RS 42.51%, and PHBV 41.35%. Microbial community analysis showed that Proteobacteria and Firmicutes were the most abundant phyla in agricultural wastes and biodegradable natural or synthetic polymers. Quantitative real-time PCR indicated the conversion from nitrate to nitrogen was achieved in all four carbon source systems, and all six genes had the highest copy number in CC. The contents of medium nitrate reductase, nitrite reductase and nitrous oxide reductase genes in agricultural wastes were higher than those in synthetic polymers. In summary, CC is an ideal carbon source for denitrification technology to purify low C/N recirculating mariculture wastewater.

Valorization of spent mushroom substrate (SMS) along with rice straw as feedstock for efficient bio gasification

Wastes generated after mushroom harvesting are known as spent mushroom substrate (SMS) which causes contamination of the environment. Anaerobic digestion is an economical and viable technology used for the management of several types of agricultural wastes, thus generating syngas that has many thermal applications. The current manuscript reports the potential of SMS for anaerobic digestion in five different combinations with rice straw, cattle dung, and bio-digested slurry. The kinetics of the biogasification process occurring in digesters was analyzed by modified Gompertz model. Results showed that maximum biogas (3,12,664 ml) was produced in digester C containing SMS, rice straw, cattle dung, and bio-digested slurry in the ratio of 8:2:1:1 as compared to control (48,968 ml) consisting of only SMS and water in the ratio of 8:2. Evaluation of feedstock for proximate and chemical composition recorded a notable reduction in total solids (TS), volatile solids (VS), cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin content as compared to control. On the other hand, ash content showed a significant increase after anaerobic digestion. Modified Gompertz equation revealed that maximum biogas production potential (P) of 6,150.50 mLg-1 VS with a biogas production rate (Rm) of 134 mLg-1d -1 and lag phase () of 12.80 days was observed in digester C as compared to the control digester A (P= 12.24 mLg-1 VS; Rm = 8.56 mLg-1d -1; =8.80 days). The study demonstrated that the codigesting SMS with rice straw can be successfully implicated for producing biogas as an energy source rather making dumped at the village site for causing pollution.

Possible effects of different types of agricultural wastes on food security and mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) production.

One of the new waters, and environmentally friendly agriculture initiatives in Peru is to encourage the utilization of agricultural waste, because low agricultural output is a threat to food security there. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the effect of harvest residues on the basidiocarp production of the fungus Pleurotus Ostreatus, in Acobamba-Huancavelica. The trial had a completely randomized design, and the treatments included T1, barley stubbles; T2, wheat stubbles; T3, pea stubbles; T4, broad bean stubbles; and T5, quinoa stubbles. The research was quantitative in nature, taking the form of an experiment with an applied, explanatory level of design. The recorded data was tabulated and analyzed with analysis of variance, as well as Tukey's test (α:0.05), for which the statistical software Infostat was used. The results are presented in tables and graphs for a better interpretation. As main results, it was obtained that the time (colonization), diameter (stem, pileus), length (stem) and weight (basidiocarps), present statistical differences between treatments showing significant enhancement in all parameters. Despite a numerical difference, a Tukey average comparison test revealed that there was no statistically significant difference between the averages for the variable time for fungus colonisation, suggesting that the treatment T5 in which quinoa substrate showed the greatest average. Treatment T4 in which broad bean stubbles were used gave the most low-average. In conclusion, increment in all parámeters were noted in all treatment of Pleurotus basidiocarps ostreatus under Acobamba conditions.

Pengaruh Jenis Limbah Pertanian dan Konsentrasi EM4 terhadap Kandungan Unsur Hara Pupuk Organik Cair

Effect of Agricultural Waste Types and Em4 Concentration on Nutrition Content of Liquid Organic Fertilizer. Agricultural waste has not been used optimally. This waste can be used as liquid organic fertilizer to get healthy agricultural products and free of pesticide residues. The type of agricultural waste and the concentration of EM4 are factors that play a role in determining the nutrient content of liquid organic fertilizer. The purpose of this study was to obtain the type of agricultural waste, the concentration of EM4, and the best interaction with the nutrient content of liquid organic fertilizer. The research treatment consisted of two factors using a randomized block design. The first factor is the type of agricultural waste consists of three levels, namely (1) vegetable waste + pig waste, (2) vegetable waste + straw + pig waste, and (3) vegetable waste + straw + gamal leaves + pig waste. The second factor is the concentration of EM4 consists of three levels, namely the concentration of 5%, 10% and 15%. The results showed that there was a very significant interaction between types of agricultural waste with EM4 concentration on available P, organic C, pH, and total microbes with the best values of 333.38 ppm (very high), 1.95% (very low), 4.75 (acid), and 19.56 x 106 cfu ml-1. Vegetable waste + straw + gamal leaves + pig waste, and 10% EM4 concentration gave the best effect compared to other treatment combinations on nutrient content. It is recommended that to makes liquid organic fertilizer should use vegetable waste + straw + gamal leaves + pig waste with an EM4 concentration of 10%.

Construction of actinomycetes complex flora in degrading corn straw and an evaluation of their degradative effects

As a type of agricultural waste, there is a large amount of lignocellulose in corn (Zea mays) straw, but it is difficult to utilize efficiently owing to its recalcitrance to enzymatic degradation. Three strains of actinomycetes that degrade cellulose were constructed as complex flora, and the conditions of cellulose degradation conditions and their degradative activity were optimized and evaluated. When the complex flora were inoculated into the fermentation medium at pH 7 and 3% (v/v), the rate of degradation of corn straw reached 38.24% after 5 d of fermentation at 28ºC and 180rpm. Cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin in the corn straw were degraded by 33.97%, 34.08%, and 21.52%, respectively. The results from scanning electron microscopy showed that the waxy layer on the surface of corn straw became thin and gradually disappeared following fermentation by the complex flora. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy showed that the complex flora could change the internal functional groups of corn straw at different fermentation periods. The compounds detected in the fermentation system indicated that the corn straw was efficiently degraded. These results indicated that the constructed complex flora was more effective at degrading corn straw than the individual strains and provides research concepts for the development and utilization of biomass resources.