• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Search Projects
  • Help
  • Log in

Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education

Grants And Education To Advance Innovations In Sustainable Agriculture
  • Grants
  • Project Reports
    • Search Projects
    • Search Project Coordinators
  • Learning Center
  • SARE In Your State
  • Events
  • Newsroom
  • About SARE

Project Overview

SW18-015
Project Type: Research and Education
Funds awarded in 2018: $287,466.00
Projected End Date: 03/31/2021
Grant Recipient: University of Idaho
Region: Western
State: Idaho
Principal Investigator:
Dr. Lide Chen
Email
University of Idaho

On-farm evaluation and demonstration of advanced manure solidliquid separation technologies for a sustainable dairy industry in Idaho

View the project report

Commodities

  • Animal Products: dairy

Practices

  • Animal Production: manure management
  • Education and Training: extension

Proposal abstract:

Solids and nutrients found in liquid manure pose challenges to manure handling processes and
cause environmental concern. Separating solids and nutrients from liquid manure is a critical step
in reducing manure handling costs, enabling better use of nutrients and water, controlling odor and
gas emissions from manure storage lagoons and manure irrigated lands, and reducing pollution
potential to ground and surface waters caused by manure, thus supporting the sustainability of the
dairy industry. This project will be the first to evaluate and compare centrifuge and disk filtration
separation technologies with a commonly used screen separation method to provide research-based
information to help dairy producers make informed decisions. The purpose of this project is to
demonstrate, evaluate, and encourage the widespread adoption of the centrifuge and disk filtration
solid/nutrient separation technologies, resulting in a more sustainable dairy industry. The approach
combines on-farm evaluation, lab tests, cost analysis, and extension activities. The project will
demonstrate the centrifuge and disk filtration effects on the capture of solids, nitrogen, and
phosphorous and on mitigating ammonia emissions. The cost effectiveness of each technology will
be analyzed to provide critical economic information for Idaho and western region dairy producers.
The expected outputs and outcomes include: 1) assessment of solids, nitrogen, and phosphorous
separation efficiencies; 2) assessment of ammonia emissions from both treated and untreated liquid
dairy manure; 3) analysis of costs associated with the demonstrated technologies; 4) field days and
producer workshops; 5) development of scholarly publications, educational materials and
technical manuals that could be adopted by Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
Idaho and Idaho State Department of Agriculture as Best Management Practices; and 6) increased
knowledge, well-informed producers, and increased adoption of the demonstrated technologies.

Project objectives from proposal:

(1) Evaluate efficiencies on capturing solids, N and P from liquid dairy manure by three different
separation technologies (centrifuge, disk filtration, and inclined screen) under real farm
operation conditions. This evaluation and comparison will provide producers research-based
data for making informed decisions;
(2) Evaluate NH3 emissions from centrifuge, disk filtration, and inclined screen treated and
untreated liquid manure to document their effects on mitigating NH3 emissions;
(3) Analyze costs associated with the demonstrated technologies to provide economic information
to help producers make informed decisions;
(4) Develop scholarly publications and educational materials to encourage the widespread
adoption of the demonstrated technologies in Idaho and the western states;
(5) Deliver four field days during this project period to demonstrate the manure solid/nutrient
centrifuge and disk filtration separation technologies to familiar stakeholders with the
demonstrated technologies;
(6) Conduct in-service training for Idaho statewide extension personnel to increase extension
manpower;
(7) Hold three producer workshops to communicate the project results with dairy producers,
resulting in increased awareness of the demonstrated technologies among farmers;
(8) Develop two technical manuals covering the utilization of centrifuge and disk filtration
technologies, respectively that could be adopted by the Idaho Natural Resources Conservation
Service (NRCS), Idaho State Department of Agriculture (ISDA), and Idaho Department of
Environmental Quality (IDEQ) as Best Management Practices (BMPs).

Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or SARE.

Primary Sidebar

Footer

SARE - Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education USDA
1122 Patapsco Building | University of Maryland | College Park, MD 20742-6715

This site is maintained by SARE Outreach for the SARE program and features research projects supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture. SARE Outreach operates under cooperative agreement award No. 2018-38640-28731 with the University of Maryland to develop and disseminate information about sustainable agriculture. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education © 2019
Help | Contact us