ABE 5707C  Agricultural Waste Management

                            http://www.agen.ufl.edu/~roger/ABE5707C.htm

 

                                                            Fall Semester, 2006

 

  I.      Agricultural Waste Management, 3 credits.

 

 II.       Course Description - Engi­neering analysis and design of systems for the collection, storage, treatment, transport, and utiliza­tion and disposal of livestock and other agricultural organic wastes and wastewaters.  Field trips to operating systems and laboratory evaluation of materials and processes.

 

III.       Objectives:

1.       To familiarize students with the physical, chemical and biological proper­ties of livestock wastes and their impact on the environment.

2.       To develop the students' abilities to analyze and design systems for the collection, handling, treatment and utilization of these wastes.

3.       To provide familiarization with operating waste management systems via field trips.

 

 IV.     Format - Two lectures and one laboratory per week.  Laboratories will be field trips to commer­cial livestock production facilities, agricultural processing plants, or other waste treatment and handling facili­ties.   Lecture will be conducted when a field trip has not been scheduled during the laboratory period.

 

  V.    Instructor -            Dr. Roger A. Nordstedt

Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department

103 Frazier Rogers Hall

Telephone (904) 392-1864 Ext 103

FAX (904) 392-4092                       

E-mail:  rnord@ufl.edu

Office Hours:  6th period, Tuesday and Thursday

 

 VI.     References          1.  Agricultural Waste Management Field Handbook.   National Engineering Handbook, Part 651.  U.S. Department                                                    of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service, Washington, D.C.

                                                            http://www.info.usda.gov/CED/Default.cfm?xSbj=51&xAud=24

 

2.  Cornell Composting

                                                            http://compost.css.cornell.edu/Composting_homepage.html

 

VII.  Grades - Grades will be based upon field trip reports and homework problems.


 


Potential Lecture Topics

 

1.       Introduction to course

2.       Problems with livestock wastes and pollution potential

3.       Characteristics of livestock wastes and quantities produced

4.       Waste and wastewater analysis

5.       Introduction to municipal sewage treatment

6.       Components of livestock waste handling systems

7.       Runoff control systems

8.       Non-point pollution from livestock origins

9.       Land application of wastes and effluents

a. Considerations

(1) heavy metals

(2) crop requirements

          b. Methods

          c. Calculations (solid, liquid, and dilute)

10.     Value of nutrients in livestock wastes

11.     Solids separation processes

12.     Lagoon systems

          a. Anaerobic

          b. Aerobic

          c. Mechanically aerated

13.     Oxidation ditch systems

14.     Liquid manure handling systems

15.     Large scale "dry" or solid handling systems

16.     Manure or slurry irrigation systems

17.     Anaerobic digestion systems

18.     Legal and regulatory aspects of livestock waste management

a. Permit requirements

          b. Odor nuisance

          c. Fly nuisance or health hazard

19.     Composting

a. Principles of composting

          b. Types of systems

          c. Materials handling

          d. Marketing

20.     Management of dead animals

          a. Rendering plants

          b. Incinerators

          c. Disposal pits

 

 



ABE 5707C  Agricultural Waste Management

 

Fall Semester, 2006

 

Field Trip Report Format

 

The field trip report should be a summary of information gathered at the facility which was visited.  It should include any facts and observations which you might need at a later date to do a design problem or to prepare a more elaborate or comprehensive report.  It should be well-organized and neat (preferably typed or printed).  It may also include some analysis of the facility, perhaps resulting from some routine calculations, or it could include suggestions for improvements in physical facilities or operational procedures.

 

A suggested outline might be as follows:

 

1.       Title (name of facility, location, date of visit, your name, etc.)   This need not be a separate page.

 

2.       Description of the facility (general layout, operation, areas visited, names of people to contact, etc.)   Hand-drawn sketches may be helpful.

 

3.       Data summary (animal populations, processing or waste treatment system capacity, animal weights, age, water use, wastewater flow, equipment sizes, etc.)

 

4.       Sketches or drawings (facility layout, flow diagrams, etc.), if not included in part 2.

 

5.       General observations (good or poor management, suggestions for changes in practices, additional facilities or modifications needed, etc.)   Be critical.