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Distribution of Heavy Metal Contents and Chemical Fractions in Anaerobically Digested Manure Slurry

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Abstract

Digested slurry samples from twenty-one large-scale anaerobic digestion plants together with intensive pig and dairy farms in Jiangsu Province of China were collected and analyzed for total and dissolved concentrations of Zn, Cu and As, as well as chemical characteristics. The results showed that total concentrations of Zn, Cu and As in digested pig slurries were concentrated to <10, <5 and 0.02–0.1 mg/l, respectively; while <2 and 10–30, <1, and 0.02–0.1 mg/l, respectively, in digested dairy slurries. Lowering the dietary supply of these elements to pig and dairy would be the most effective way to control heavy metal contents in digested manure slurries. Dissolved fractions of Zn, Cu and As accounted for 1–74%, 1–33% and 2–53% of the total concentrations, respectively, in digested pig slurries; and 18–65%, 12–58% and 3–68% in digested dairy slurries. The chemical fractions of heavy metals in digested slurries were not only dependent on the total concentrations of heavy metals in raw manures but also on conditions of digestion and storage. Oxidation pond systems could significantly cripple the total contents of heavy metals in digested slurries, and the removal effect was better in multi-oxidation-pond systems than that in primary-oxidation-pond systems. However, the chemical fractions of heavy metals in digested slurries changed in a complicated manner when stored in oxidation ponds, due to the suspended solid deposition, elements reduction, as well as variations of pH values and oxidation-reduction potential.

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Acknowledgements

This work was finally supported by the Ministry of Agriculture (No. 200903011-01) and Jiangsu International Cooperation Project (No. BZ2009101). The authors thank Dr. Xiaomei Ye, Dr. Yan Ma and Ms. Jin Zhu for data sharing, and Ms. Zhi Xu and the staff in various farms for logistic assistance and help with sampling. We thank He Chang for help with translating clearly. The constructive comments by two anonymous reviewers have helped to improver this paper over an earlier version.

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  1. Laboratory for Agricultural Wastes Treatment and Recycling, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Environment, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Jiangsu, 210014, China

    Hongmei Jin & Zhizhou Chang

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  1. Hongmei Jin
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Correspondence to Zhizhou Chang.

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Jin, H., Chang, Z. Distribution of Heavy Metal Contents and Chemical Fractions in Anaerobically Digested Manure Slurry. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 164, 268–282 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12010-010-9133-7

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