Research conducted by PAMI suggests solid-liquid separation offers a potential alternative for addressing concerns related to the phosphorus contained in livestock manure.
The Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute in partnership with the Manitoba Livestock Manure Management Initiative, Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the University of Manitoba, the National Centre for Livestock and the Environment and the Puratone Corporation has completed an evaluation of two commercially available technologies for solid-liquid swine manure separation.
Preliminary results were presented yesterday as part of the 2012 Manitoba Swine Seminar in Winnipeg.
PAMI Agricultural Projects Manager Lorne Grieger says researchers evaluated a centrifuge and a Fournier rotary press.
Key findings so far, I would say the biggest thing is the phosphorus removal.
We’ve seen removal rates around up to 50 to 60 percent phosphorus removal with different technologies under different conditions and even higher than that depending on the manure concentration of phosphorus going into the systems.
Other key findings would include the implementation method.
It’s not just as simple as hooking up a system to an existing operation.
There’s different considerations that have to be taken care of before the systems go on line.
These include how additional manure solids are handled.
There’s an additional manure stream that now needs to be managed and taken care of as well as some potential health and safety issues that can arise from working with liquid manure that sits and has a potential for hydrogen sulfide gas release.
Grieger says these results indicate there is potential to modify the manure stream to allow the export of the dry solids, which contain a high percentage of the phosphorus, but a key considerations is cost including capital equipment, labor and operating expenses.
Results of the evaluation are now being compiled and a final report will be released by the end of next month.
