• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.92-96
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• 2003

The on-site sewage sludge vermicomposting equipment was designed and evaluated on the batch and continuous tests. The vermicomposting equipment was designed to consider the mechanization as well as automation. In terms of performance evaluation of equipment with continuous experiments, the highest treatment rate was found in the condition of 5mm in particle size and 10mm in e feeding height. Also, 20~25kg of earthworm per 50kg of sewage sludge was the most appropriate density of earthworm. In addition, the most effective separation of cast was found when the earthworm breeding box height was 80cm. The performance evaluation on equipment allowed the establishment of earthworm composting capacity of 2ton per a day with a size of $5{\times}3{\times}1m$ and the automatic control devices.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.73-78
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• 2002

Four inorganic packing materials (zeocarbon, porous celite, porous glass, zeolite) and a earthworm cast were compared with regard to the removal of ammonia in a biofilter inoculated with earthworm cast. Physical adsorption of ammonia on packing materials were negligible except zeocarbon (23.5 g-$NH_3$/kg), and cell immobilization capacity have similar values irrespective of packing materials. Pressure drops of the packed bed were in order of earthworm cast zeocarbon zeolite porous glass porous. The maximum elimination capacity ($g-Nkg^{-1}$ $d^{-1}$ ) of ammonia, which were based on a unit volume of packing material, were in order of zeocarbon (526) earthworm cast (220) porous celite (93) > zeolite (68) > porous glass (53). By using kinetic analysis, the maximum removal rates ($V_{m}$ ) and the saturation constant ($K_{s}$ ) for ammonia were determined, and zeocarbon showed superior performance among the five materials.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.75-85
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• 2012

This study was investigated to develop an alternative medium for the cultivation of oyster mushrooms. The cultivation characteristics for major cultivated varieties of oyster mushrooms were campared with the food waste medium. In addition, water control & a gap formation of food waste is being pointed out as a problem of the medium material. Therefore, certain amounts of earthworm casting were supplied to the food waste medium to overcome the water and compaction phenomenon. This study investigated the use of the total 6 cultivars of oyster mushrooms, the Suhan(PL.1), Chiak No. 5(PL.2), Chiak No. 7(PL.3), Samgu No. 5(PL.4), Samgu No. 8(PL.5), Jangan No. 5(PL.6). In terms of medium, the optimum growth of the mycelium of the oyster mushroom was observed in the beet pulp medium but in food waste, the mycelium's growth was observed as insufficient in the bulk of cultivars. The Jangan No. 5(PL.6) was superior to other cultivars relative to the mycelium's growth. The optimum concentration of earthworm casting added the foodwaste medium was 30%. When Jangan No. 5(PL.6) was incubated in the foodwaste meidum containing 30% earthworm casting, the early days to germination were long, almost double the amount of time than that of the beet pulp medium. However, it was found that the fruit body size was larger than that of the beet pulp by up to 20.5%, and the length of the fruit body was up to 6.2% longer than that of the beet plup. The total yields increased by 60.5%. The analysis results of the oyster mushroom's nutritional contents cultured using the food waste medium, shows that the protein, vitamin A and vitamin E increased 70.6%, 2.4%, 0.8% respectively, the fat decreased by 12.6% and the oleic acid increased in a very small amount compared to that of the beet pulp medium.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.45-53
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• 2010

Feeding rate and growth rate of earthworm population on the variously pretreated spent materials of the agaric-mushroom cultivation were investigated. When the spent mushroom substrates with different aging periods were supplied to earthworm, feeding rate and growth rate of earthworm population on spent mushroom substrates aged less than 10 days were higher than that on spent mushroom substrates aged more than 20 days. Feeding rate and growth rate were not increased when the spent mushroom substrate mixed with vermicasts or nitrogenous fertilizer was supplied. Feeding rate and growth rate on the ground mushroom substrate were higher than that on the non-ground mushroom substrate. Especially when the ground mushroom substrate was mixed with rice bran and supplied to earthworms, growth rate was much higher than that on the non-ground spent mushroom substrate; it increased 1.85 times.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.4 no.4
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• pp.418-421
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• 2003

This study is object to design and souctural analysis of duck breeding system. Design tool is Auto CAD and souctural analysis of duck breeding system using result from ANSYS Code. The finite element model was developed to compute the stress, strain and displacement for duck breeding system. This structural analysis results, many variables such as boundary condition, constraint condition and load condition are considered.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2014

This study was carried out to investigate the effect of feeding fermented earthworm cast additives (FEC) on egg production, egg yolk fatty acids, blood lipid, cecal microorganism and fecal odor. The completely randomized experiment was applied, and the treatments were designed as 2 feeding regimens (control vs. FEC feeding), and FEC contained 3.5% top dressing to common diet. Egg production and egg weight of FEC group were significantly higher than that of control (p<0.05). Ratios of n-6/n-3 fatty acids in the egg yolk of FEC group were significantly higher than those in control group (p<0.05). Concentrations of HDL-C in FEC group was significantly higher than control group (p<0.05), but not triglyceride and total cholesterol. The caecal Lactobacillus of FEC group was significantly higher in FEC group than control group (p<0.05). $NH_3$ concentrations from poultry house were significantly lower in FEC group than control (p<0.05). In conclusion, these study results showed that the addition of FEC at 3.5% to the diet has reduced odor of poultry house and improved the n-6/n-3 fatty acid of egg yolk and egg production in laying hens.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.29 no.7
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• pp.820-825
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• 2007

Earthworm casting was the natural fertilizer that contained high concentrations of nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphate and potassium and of over $10^8$ CFU/ml of microorganisms. Greater than 80% of feed was excreted through the fermentation by the intestinal enzyme, after worm had eaten feeds such as fallen leaves and rotten roots under the ground. Also, the soil structure of casting was known to be very efficient in the aspects of the porosity, the water permeability, and deodorizing activities. In this research, the biofilter packed with a biomedia made of casting and waste polyurethane foam, a binder, which helped to improve the durability and perpetuity of casting, was investigated to degrade malodorous hydrogen sulfide gas. The biomedia had no need of extra supply of nutrients and of microbial inoculations. On the beginning of the operations, it showed 100% removal of hydrogen sulfide gas without lag phase. At SV of 50 $h^{-1}$, hydrogen sulfide gas from the outlet of the biofilter was not detected, when inlet concentration increased to 450 ppmv. After that, removal efficiency decreased as increasing inlet hydrogen sulfide concentration. Hydrogen sulfide removal was maintained at almost 93% until inlet concentration was increased up to 950 ppmv, at which the elimination capacity of $H_2S$ was 61.2 g $S{\cdot}m^{-3}{\cdot}h^{-1}$. Maximum elimination capacity guaranteing 90% removal was 61.2, 65.9, 84.7, 89.4 g $S{\cdot}m^{-3}{\cdot}h^{-1}$ at SV ranging from 50 $h^{-1}$ to 300 $h^{-1}$, but was 59.3 g $S{\cdot}m^{-3}{\cdot}h^{-1}$ at SV of 400 $h^{-1}$. The results calculated from Michaelis-Menten equation revealed that $V_m$ increased from 66.04, 88.96, 117.35, 224.15, to 227.54 g $S{\cdot}m^{-3}{\cdot}h^{-1}$ with increasing space velocity in the range of 50 $h^{-1}$ to 400 $h^{-1}$. However, saturation constant$(K_s)$ decreased from 79.97 ppmv to 64.95 and 65.37 ppmv, and then increased to 127.72 and 157.43 ppmv.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.265-270
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• 2004

To select a promising technologies for removal of odorous gases emitted from a wastewater pump station, four methods such as activated carbon (A/C) adsorption, chemical absorption (acid and alkali scrubber), and two biofilters (polyurethane (PU) and worm cast) were investigated. The average odor removal efficiencies in the PU biofilter and A/C column was over 98%, but in a worm cast biofilter and chemical absorption were below 60-80%. The removal efficiency of PU biofilter was very stable (about 98-99%) in the range of retention times of 4-36s, and a maximum elimination capacity was $1.6${\times}$10^{ 7}$ $OUm^{-3}$$h^{-1}$ Deodorization costs for an activated carbon adsorption and a biofiltration method were investigated. With increasing odor intensity, the operating cost of the A/C column increased linearly, but the operating cost of the biofilteration increased slightly. The capital cost in a biofilter is about two times higher than that in an A/C column, but the operating cost is very lower than that of in A/C column. In conclusion, the biofiltration was evaluated one of the most promising technologies to control odor in a wastewater pump station.

• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.287-298
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• 2008

This experiment was carried out to investigate the effect of different feed conditions on growth, cast production and conversion efficiency of organic matter to the earthworm. The experiment was tested on cow manure(CM) mixed with rice hulls (RH) or rice straw(RS). The mixture ratios were designed as one time, two times and three times of cow manure volume, respectively. The CM and RH mixtures resulted better on growth rate, reproductive efficiency and wormcast production than those for CM and RS mixtures. Especially on three times of RH mixture showed the highest growth characteristics compared to the other mixtures. Although both were between 20 and 34 on carbon and nitrogen ratio, the result inferred that the difference on the growth might have been caused by feeding conditions. On the mixtures of cow manure with rice hulls(CM+RH) was significantly higher on values on the conversion rate and conversion efficiency of organic matter to earthworm tissues than the mixtures of cow manure with rice straw(CM+RS). The most concerned point of the mixture of earthworm feed is that high contents of volatile solid and total carbon that increases in conversion efficiency of organic matter to earthworm tissues, and also causes the increase in growth rate and reproductive efficiency. The wormcast could be used as a valuable plant growth medium or soil conditioner for sustainable agriculture and it may be due to their high qualities of physico-chemical properties.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.322-329
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• 2017

Two pilot-scale biocovers (PBCs) were installed in a landfill, and the methane ($CH_4$) concentrations at their inlets and outlets were monitored for 240 days to evaluate the methane removability. Consequently, the packing materials were sampled from the PBCs, and their potential $CH_4$ oxidizing abilities were evaluated in serum vials. The $CH_4$ concentration at the inlet of the biocovers was observed to be in the range of 23.7-47.9% (average = 41.3%, median = 42.6%). In PBC1, where a mixture of soil, earthworm cast, and compost (7:2:1, v/v) was employed as the packing material, the $CH_4$ removal efficiency was evaluated to be between 60.7-85.5%. In PBC2, which was filled with a mixture of soil, earthworm cast, perlite, and compost (4:2:3:1, v/v), the removal efficiency was evaluated to be between 29.2-78.5%. Although the packing materials had an excellent $CH_4$ oxidizing potential (average oxidation rate for $CH_4=180-199{\mu}g\;CH_4{\cdot}g\;packing\;material^{-1}{\cdot}h^{-1}$), $CH_4$ removal efficiency in PBC1 and PBC2 decreased to the range of 0-30% once the packing materials in the PBCs were clogged and channeled. Furthermore, seasonal effects exhibited no significant differences in the $CH_4$ removal efficiency of the biocovers. The results of this study can be used to design and operate real-scale biocovers in landfills to mitigate $CH_4$ buildup.