Improved effect of manure acidification technology for gas emission mitigation by substituting sulfuric acid with acetic acid

Abstract

Animal manure is a significant source of ammonia, methane, hydrogen sulfide, and odor emissions. Manure acidification to pH 5.5 using sulfuric acid (H2SO4) is an approved method for reducing ammonia and methane emissions from barns and retaining bioavailable nitrogen in the slurry for subsequent field fertilization. However, the use of H2SO4 may increase the emission of malodorous sulfur compounds and reduces subsequent biogas production. In this study, we investigated if substituting a part of the H2SO4 treatment with acetic acid (CH3COOH) improves manure emissions. In two experiments, cattle manure was incubated for 11 days each and acidified daily with either i) H2SO4 (4M) or CH3COOH (4M), or ii) mixes of both acids (4M H2SO4 + 8M CH3COOH, in volume ratios of 75:25, 50:50, and 25:75) until pH 5.5. The emission of ammonia, methane, hydrogen sulfide, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was monitored continuously. At the end of both experiments, cumulative ammonia emission was reduced by 75% by H2SO4 and by 83% by CH3COOH, indicating that CH3COOH was more efficient. Acetic acid almost completely eliminated CH4 emission, while H2SO4 reduced CH4 emission by 89%. Furthermore, CH3COOH acidification resulted in lower odorant emissions compared to H2SO4. Based on the second experiment, we recommend using a high percentage of CH3COOH during the first days of acidification, followed by a mix containing at least 50% CH3COOH, to achieve a high mitigation efficiency with a lower emission of sulfur compounds compared to H2SO4 alone.

Keywords

• Manure acidification
• Ammonia mitigation
• Methane emission
• Sulfur compounds
• Volatile organic compounds