Difference Between Aerobic and Anaerobic Fermentation of Organic Fertilizer

Fermentation is the most critical process of organic fertilizer production, which directly affects the quality of the final product of organic fertilizer. The representative organic fertilizer fermentation processes are anaerobic fermentation process and aerobic fermentation process, here we look at the differences.

Anaerobic fermentation

Anaerobic fermentation is the process of organic fertilizer decomposition under anaerobic conditions, whose main products are methane, carbon dioxide and many low molecular weight intermediate products, such as organic acids.

Anaerobic fermentation produces less energy per unit mass of organic matter degraded compared to aerobic fermentation, and anaerobic fermentation usually tends to emit odors.

For these reasons, anaerobic fermentation is currently mostly used in supporting biogas projects. Anaerobic fermentation not only has a large investment in the plant, but also needs to solve the problem of using biogas and digestate. Therefore, most organic fertilizer production plants use aerobic fermentation process to rotate and prepare raw materials.

Aerobic fermentation

Aerobic fermentation is the process of decomposition of organic materials under aerobic conditions, and its metabolic products are mainly carbon dioxide and water. Aerobic fermentation is the process of mineralization, maturation and harmlessness of organic materials through fermentation under the action of microorganisms to turn them into rotten fertilizers. In the process of microbial decomposition of organic matter, not only generates a large number of effective state nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and other compounds that can be absorbed by plants, but also synthesizes new macromolecular compounds - humus, which is an important active substance constituting soil fertility.

Compared with anaerobic, aerobic fermentation has the characteristics of low cost, strong biological activity of fermentation products, high fertilization efficiency, easy to promote, while achieving the purpose of deodorization and sterilization, so most organic fertilizer production plants use aerobic fermentation process.