CASE STUDY
1. BACKGROUND
Purification of Waters of the Mediterranean, S.L. (DAM) has over twenty years of experience in the operation of wastewater treatment plants and sewage sludge treatment plants. In the Vintena sewage treatment plant, in Carcaixent (Valencia), composting of the sludge derived from the treatment of wastewater and vegetable waste is carried out, obtaining a compost of high agronomic value.
DAM and FICOSTERRA have carried out a pilot test to analyze the effectiveness of the ficoswaste product as a deodorizer and accelerator of the composting processes, obtaining very positive results.
2.- THE PROCESS
The production process consists of the formation of piles that mix sludge with pruning remains and weekly flips for 4-5 months, until the compost is ripe and ready for use in agriculture.
In the test carried out during the months of October to January 2017 at the Vintena plant, a pile treated with ficoswaste was mounted and carried in parallel with another pile to which the product was not applied.
3.- THE RESULTS
In the pilot stack treated with ficoswaste, an important improvement was quantified, around 30%, in the amount of treated sludge compared to the control one. This difference is the result of increased digestion of the material, produced by the microorganisms of ficoswaste. There was also a reduction in bad odors, an effect also common in those environments in which the product intervenes.
As a result of this pilot test, DAM has decided to extend the use of ficoswaste to its composting process by applying it on a larger scale in order to corroborate the results of the first test and to know in more detail the benefits that this technology can bring them in the future.
4.- ABOUT THE PRODUCT
Ficoswaste® is a liquid solution that contains extracts of algae and regenerating microorganisms to accelerate the degradation of organic matter and the reduction of odors coming from the decomposition of it.
