• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.247-259
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• 2015

This study was performed to investigate the application of dark $H_2$ fermentation to two-stage bioprocesses for organic waste treatment and energy production. We reviewed information about the two-stage bioprocesses combining dark $H_2$ fermentation with $CH_4$ fermentation, photo $H_2$ fermentation, microbial fuel cells (MFCs), or microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) by using academic information databases and university libraries. Dark fermentative bacteria use organic waste as the sole source of electrons and energy, converting it into $H_2$. The reactions related to dark $H_2$ fermentation are rapid and do not require sunlight, making them useful for treating organic waste. However, the degradation is not complete and organic acids remain. Thus, dark $H_2$ fermentation should be combined with a post-treatment process, such as $CH_4$ fermentation, photo $H_2$ fermentation, MFCs, or MECs. So far, dark $H_2$ fermentation followed by $CH_4$ fermentation is a promising two-stage bioprocess among them. However, if the problems of manufacturing expenses, operational cost, scale-up, and practical applications will be solved, the two-stage bioprocesses combining dark $H_2$ fermentation with photo $H_2$ fermentation, MFCs, or MECs have also infinite potential in organic waste treatment and energy production. This paper demonstrated the feasibility of two-stage bioprocesses combining dark $H_2$ fermentation as a novel system for organic waste treatment and energy production.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.46-53
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• 2018

This study explores the environmentally innovative and low-impact technology, a zero food waste system (ZFWS) that utilizes food waste and converts it into composts or biofuels and curtails carbon emissions. The ZFWS not just achieves food waste reductions but recycles food waste into fertilizer. Based on a fermentation-extinction technique using bio wood chips, the ZFWS was employed in a field experiment of the system installed in a large-scale apartment complex, and the performance of the system was examined. The on-site ZFWS consisted of three primary parts: 1) a food waste slot into which food waste was injected; 2) a fermentation-extinction reactor where food waste was mixed with bio wood chips made up of complex enzyme and aseptic wood chips; and 3) deodorization equipment in which an ultraviolet and ozone photolysis method was employed. The field experiment showed that food waste injected into the ZFWS was reduced by 94%. Overall microbial activity of the food waste in the fermentation-extinction reactor was measured using adenosine tri-phosphate (ATP), and the degradation rate of organic compounds, referred to as volatile solids, increased with ATP concentration. The by-products generated from ZFWS comply with the national standard for organic fertilizer.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.5 no.6
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• pp.469-474
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• 2000

In order to enhance the degradation efficiency of waste activated sludge (WAS) by thermophilic aerobic digestion, an ultrasonic pretreatment was examined. It was observed that ultrasonic pretreatment increased the solubilization of organic matter in the WAS and that the solubilization ratio of the organics increased during the first 30 min but did not extensively increase thereafter. Therefore, a pretreatment time of 30 min was determined to be the economical pretreatment time from the experimental results. From the digestion experiments, which was conducted using the WAS collected from an oil refinery plant in Inchon, Korea, investigating the effects of an ultrasonic pretreatment on thermophilic aerobic digestion, it was confirmed that the proposed ultrasonic pretreatment was effective at enhancing the release of the cellular components in WAS and the degradation of released components in the thermophilic aerobic digestion.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.265-270
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• 2014

Protease producing microorganisms were isolated from many kinds of food waste and fermented foods, which contains high amount and variable kinds of degraded substances. Several microorganisms were identified by 16S rRNA full sequencing analysis methods. The activity of protease was analyzed and identified in variable conditions for the application. For industrial use for biowaste treatment some proteases were isolated, identified and selected from microbial cells. And the tests were carried for the further use. The protein degrading activity at low temperature is useful for the treatment of organic waste, which contains much proteins. By the protein degradation process the organic waste can be utilized in variable fields, for example from feedstuff supplement to fertilizer for agriculture. Bacterial cells with protease activity at low temperature were isolated and identified. The optimal conditions for microbial cultivation and protease production were studied.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.160-167
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• 2000

This study was performed to evaluate efficiency of soil microbial inoculator for active composting of food waste. In addition the number of microorganisms in roil microbial inoculator and the effect of seeding in the process of composting were investigated. food waste samples collected from a refectory were analyzed for physical-chemical properties. The samples were adjusted to moisture content of 65% by saw dust and seeded with soil microbial inoculator of 10% by the weight in case of reactor B. The number of microorganisms, aerobic bacteria, actinomyces, yeast, and fungi in soil microbial inoculator were over $2.98{\times}10^9/g$, $3.93{\times}10^7/g$, $1.21{\times} 10^5/g$, and $5.79{\times}10^7/g$, respectively. During the process of composting, the highest temperatures were $63.4^{\circ}C$ at reactor A(unseeded control)after 10 days and $66.8^{\circ}C$ at reactor B(seeded compost) after 4 days. The pH values of reactor A and B rapidly increased after 3 days and after first few days during composting period, respectively. The highest $CO_2$ concentrations were 6.1%(after 10 days) and 10.8%(afer 4 days) in reactor A and B, respectively. The degradation rates of organic matter(rd) between reactor A and B increased by 17.1% and 64.5%, respectively Consequently, the effects of Inoculation on comporting parameter such as temperature increasing, pH change, chemical properties, and the degradation rates of organic matter(rd) were higher in seeded compost than in unseeded control.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.124-130
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• 2005

Landfilling is most widely used as the final disposal tool of solid wastes. Solid wastes landfilled are stabilized by microbial degradation which is affected by several factors such as moisture, oxygen, pH, alkalinity, sulphate, nutrient, inhibitor, hydrogen, and temperature. Especially moisture plays a major role in microbial degradation. In this study, the effects of moisture on the degradation of municipal solids waste (MSW) were investigated. Four lysimeters with four different levels of moisture content i.e., 20, 30, 40, and 50% were operated; lysimeters were packed with MSW, and anaerobically operated. Anaerobic lysimeters with higher moisture content produced more $CO_2$ and landfill gases (LFG). It means that the moisture has a positive effect on the microbial degradation.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.67-73
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• 2014

In India, disposal of vegetable market waste along with municipal solid waste in landfills or dumpsites is creating much nuisance in terms of odor nuisance, leachate production, and greenhouse gas emission into the atmosphere. Therefore, vegetable waste with high biodegradable and nutrient content is composted in a 550-L batch scale rotary drum composter to study the degradation process and its compost properties for its potential reuse as high quality compost. A total 150 kg of working volume was fixed for composting studies with two different ratios, trial A (6:3:1) of C/N 24 and trial B (8:1:1) of C/N 30, respectively. A maximum of $63.5^{\circ}C$ and $61.2^{\circ}C$ was observed in trials A and B; an average of $55^{\circ}C$ for more than 5 days, which helped in the degradation of organic matter and reduction of total and fecal coliform. The temperature dropped suddenly after the thermophilic stage in trial B, and leachate was observed due to insufficient amount of bulking agent. Mesophilic bacteria dominated during the initial stages of composting, and reduced considerably during the thermophilic stage. During the thermophilic stage, the rise in spore-forming organisms, including spore-forming bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes and streptomycetes, increased and these were predominant until the end of the composting process. By examination, it was observed that moisture and leachate production had adverse effects on the compost parameters with higher loss of micronutrients and heavy metals.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.118-123
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• 2000

Food waste results in various problems such as decay, odors and leachate in collection, transportation and landfill due to the high volatile solids and moisture content. Acidogenic fermentation of food waste is influenced by the environmental conditions such as pH, retention time, etc. Each component of food waste is degraded under the different environmental conditions. Starch, cellulose and protein have their own optimum pHs and retention times for degradation. The degradation of starch increases at low pH, cellulose with increasing retention time, and protein with increasing retention time as well as approaching neutral pH. These mean that the degradation of food waste can be enhanced by adjusting the environmental conditions of acidogenic fermentation. The efficiency of acidification increased from 71.2 to 81.1% by controlling dilution(D) rate from 3.0 to $1.0d^{-1}$ depending on the state of the fermentation. The main component of the acidified product was shifted from butyric to acetic acid, indicating that the increase of acidification was mainly caused by the enhanced degradation of vegetables and meats.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.21-30
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• 1998

The effects of compost inoculation on the degradation of cellulosic fraction in composting of food waste and paper mixture were investigated by bench-scale composting. With the increase of seed inoculation, the time to reach the peaks of temperature, $CO_2$ evolution rate, and ammonia evolution rate was reduced, indicating that seed compost had beneficial effects on the enhanced degradation of organic materials at the early stage of composting. However, the final conversion of organic matters and the loss of ammonia were not affected by the amount of seed compost inoculated. The increasing of seed inoculum also resulted in the higher level of cellulase activity at initial stages and rapid rise to the maximums, suggesting that initial supply of sufficient cellulolytic microorganisms might facilitate the evolution of cellulase activity. The cellulose was degraded substantially during the increasing phase of cellulase activity, while they showed similar values at the end of 20 days composting. As a result, the seed inoculation seemed to be effective to the enhanced evolution of cellulase activity and cellulose degradation at initial stage of composting. But it did not contribute to increase the final degradation of cellulose after the entire composting reaction of 20 days.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.73-78
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• 2010

In this study, recovering agent was produced with organic sludge and modified peat moss (MPM) in pilot plant mixer to recover oil contaminated soil, and field test of it was estimated using landfarming method. Oil contaminated soil recovering agent was thought to contain more microorganisms than raw waste sludge and was no problem to come onto the market because there were not any items of specified wastes. According to the results of TPH variation with time, it was observed the initial degradation velocity of oil with produced recovering agent was rapid up to 50% after 4 days, remarkably. Because the microorganisms in the organic sludge discharged from chemical plant already acclimated with oil, therefore, it could be estimated initial degradation velocity of recovering agent might be rapid. It was concluded that the oil contaminated soil recovering agent produced in this study have high marketability because of its two aspects on recycling of wastes and initial rapid degradation capacity.