Laboratory scale tests show that more than 60% of the volatile solids in swine manure can be converted to bio-crude oil using a thermo-chemical conversion (TCC) process. The process can work with manure pulled from shallow pits up to 40 days old with minimal decline in the oil yield or quality compared to that from fresh manure. It is not known how well the process will work with older manure (e.g., from deep pits or lagoons), but it is known that there is some loss of volatile solids with time, so the potential yields are lower. Our research team was able to produce oil with blends of swine manure and sawdust and swine manure and corn stalks. We also produced oil when a separation process was used to concentrate the manure solids. The scope of this research was not to track the nutrient flow. However, the researchers noted that the most valuable nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) are not consumed in the TCC process, and thus remain available for use as fertilizer. The scope of this research was also not economic and cost-benefit analyses. However, based on the measured oil yields, the manure from a hog from birth to market will produce 1/4 to 1/3 barrels of bio-crude oil. And the TCC process kills pathogens in swine manure.
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