Drying poultry manure at the Farmhouse

Animation of an overall concept for drying poultry manure from laying hens near the farmhouse. Drying prevents all the issues regarding handling/storage of wet manure. The final product is a rich organic fertiliser, serving as an alternative to inorganic fertilisers.
Drying provides a better alternative to traditional composting.

Steps shown in the animation in chronological order:
- daily removal of fresh manure from the barn to the dryer
- the manure is dried up to 85% DM within 2 days.
- warm stable air from the barn is used for drying
- the drier has four layers
- the dried manure is transported to a bunker at the pelleting plant
- in this video a toploader is used to load the manure into the pelleting plant, because this is suitable for truck transport. No truck would be needed when the pelleting plant is close to the drier.
- the dry manure is dosed before entering the pelletizing press
- the pellets are sanitised by storing them for 1 hour at 70˚. This makes the product exportable.
- the heated pellets are soft. A cooler makes them hard en removes some of the remaining moisture.
- bagging makes the product ready for sale.

Why would I want to dry fresh chicken manure?
- the dried manure has significant value as organic fertiliser -
Drying removes the moisture, while containing the nitrogen and other components relevant for creating a valuable fertiliser.
- reduction of ammonia emission -
Wet manure creates ammonia emission. Because the system removes the wet manure from the barn daily and dries the manure within two days, ammonia emission is prevented.
- reduced odour annoyance -
For the same reasons as the above, the odour production is significantly reduced. Odour production from wet manure or composing manure is a thing of the past with dried manure.
- reduction of dust pollution -
When using stable air for the drying process, the drier works as a dust filtration, reducing dust pollution from the stable air to an average of 70%.
- improved hygiene at the farm -
Drying can be done next to the barn. No more storage of wet manure occurs near the laying hens. Reduced dust, ammonia and odour emissions improve the working conditions of personal and neighbours.


Drying provides a better alternative to traditional composting.

Drying poultry manure compared to composting poultry manure:
- drying has a higher electricity requirement
- the drying process is a lot quicker, because it only takes two days to dry the manure when using stable air. This is also the case in the winter season.
- drying only has a fraction of the ammonia and odour emission
- drying has significantly (ca. 50%) less loss of Nitrogen, which results in a much higher nitrogen content in the final product
- the drier works as a dust filtration for stable air
- drying uses less space on the farm
- drying is not a bacterial process and is therefore easy to control
- when pelletizing after drying, the final product has a smaller volume then the composted end product
- composting make the minerals less fixated in organic materials.

It is important to take notice that there might be a fundamental difference between the end-products "compost" and "organic fertilizer":
- Compost: generally, the most important function of compost is to be a soil improver, to create a structure to the soil with sufficient pores and humus (aeration), to have a balanced soil with good conditions for micro-organisms, worms, etc. The addition of nutrients has a minor role;
- Organic fertilizer: the main role is to provide nutrients to the soil that can be taken-up by the plants, such that less inorganic fertilizer is needed.

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