US 5,772,721 A · Process for producing odorless organic and semi-organic fertilizer

Abstract

A substantially odorless and sterilized fertilizer in pellet form is produced by combining a dry organic waste material and a dry binder material, then combining the resulting dry mixture with steam, water and/or further organic waste in the form of sludge. The resulting material is provided to an extruder for a more thorough, dispersive mixing, a pressure increase to at least 100 psi, and heating above the glass transition temperature of the binder, and more preferably to at least about 125.degree. C. to substantially sterilize the material mass. The extruded material is forced through a die and released to an ambient environment, rapidly reducing pressure of the material and thereby lysing spores and microorganisms surviving conditions within the extruder. The emerging material is segmented and dried, or segmented and tumbled to form pellets, then dried. When dried to a moisture content of at most 7%, the pellets further can be inoculated with an active agent within an adhesive, resulting in a final moisture content of 10-14%.

Claims10

Dependent claims

A process for forming a substantially odorless fertilizer from organic waste material, comprising:

combining an organic waste material and a binder material consisting essentially of a carbohydrate or a protein, with moisture to provide a mixture material including 18-65% moisture, by weight;
mechanically working the mixture material to dispersively mix the mixture material while heating the mixture material to at least a glass transition temperature of the binder material, to form an amorphous, substantially uniform matrix;
while maintaining the matrix at a temperature above the glass transition temperature, further mechanically working and mixing the matrix within an anaerobic environment while heating the matrix to increase its temperature to at least 100.degree. C. and increasing its pressure to at least about 100 psi;
and
expelling the matrix from the anaerobic environment to an ambient environment, thus to abruptly reduce the pressure of the matrix to an ambient level, thereby lysing spores and organisms carried by the matrix whereby the expelled material is substantially sterilized.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Process for producing odorless organic and semi-organic fertilizer

Life of this patent

Process for producing odorless organic and semi-organic fertilizer

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims10