The Composter is Alive!

After much frustration and hard work, the experimental composting is now running. Today we put in our first batch food waste mixture following the mix-ratio calculated by Duncan and John. The food waste was mixed with cow manure, and wood chips at the proper amounts calculated. Hopefully soon we will be able to see an increse in temperature.

Below is the complete composter set-up



The image below is a a screenshot of the

Analytical Lab Test Results

The analytical lab test results are back and we are now ready to calculate the mix ratios for the composting process. We will be testing the mix ratios with in the next week. The experimental composter rebuild is going very well. The image below is our calculated C:N ratios from the analytical data results.

Experimental Composter Resurrection

A significant part of our project is testing the mix-ratio of the campus dining food wastes that will be composted. Having the right mix-ratio is very important for composting because the biological processes that occur are dependent on a proper carbon to nitrogen ratio (C:N). Our team will be able to determine if our mix-ratio calculations are correct by using an experimental composter provided to us by Dr. Tom Hess. The composter is very old and will need to be re-programmed before it can be used. Kyle is currently working on the coding for the logic controller and testing the thermocouples.