a glance at the world: Combustion of poultry derived wastes for smart energy recovery in Italy

The direct land application of the poultry litter is not anymore the most appropriate disposal technique. Composting is an alternative to direct land application, which results in reduced volumes for disposal, improves consistency of waste, and the elimination of pathogens, although additional equipment and handling costs are incurred and the problems of nutrient run off and heavy metal contamination remain. Nevertheless, scientists and poultry industry leaders are being challenged to find alternative ways of managing poultry litter. In this paper we investigated combustion of common poultry derived wastes (i.e., manure, bedding and a mixture of these with olive pomace) in Italy. Specifically we: (i) review waste preparation for feeding small scale combustion plants; (ii) determine the potential for energy generation in Italy from poultry wastes; (iii) characterize typical waste and product streams based on combustion tests performed in a pilot burner. We observed that, the high CO emissions compared to wood pellet combustion can be reduced by optimizing combustion; a high particle emissions compared to wood pellet emissions is measured; the particulate size distribution function is not influenced by poultry litter content; and inorganic elements are mainly concentrated in ashes.