Innovative Bio-Products for Agriculture : Pig Manure Utilization and Treatment

The book presents studies on the utilization of pig manure and is focused on two areas: (1) the use of the manure to fertilize soil; and (2) the treatment of raw and digested manure, the separation into liquid and solid phases and the subsequent use of the two thus obtained products. The fertilizing effects of the manure originating from Polish pig farms on the croplands belonging to the pig farm owners in 2008-2010 are discussed. Irrespective of the cropland's surface, the main issues include the fact that fertilizing with pig manure is possible for only 6 months in a year, and the little distance between the cropland and pig farms. A new process (called the AMAK method) of pig manure mineralization using phosphoric and sulfuric acids, followed by the addition of lime milk and superphosphate, allows the introduction of a crystalline phase (hydroxyapatite) into the solid phase of pig manure, which, in turn, enables the separation of pig manure suspension into solid and liquid phases at a very high filtration rate. As a result, organic matter in the filtrate is reduced by 99%. The obtained filtrate is suitable for sprinkling irrigation of the crops. The recipes for mineral-organic fertilizers with microelements were developed on the basis of the filtration sediment. Agricultural application studies have shown their high fertilization values.