Monday, November 13, 2006
47-2

Manipulating Bedding Materials and Sodium Bisulfate to Reduce Ammonia Emissions from Broiler Litter.

Armando S. Tasistro, Miguel Cabrera, Casey W. Ritz, and David Kissel. Univ of Georgia, 2400 College Station Rd, Athens, GA 30602-9105

We studied the effect of five bedding materials (wood shavings, sawdust, peanut hulls, wheat straw, and shredded paper) and PLT (a commercial formulation of sodium bisulfate) in factorial combinations, on NH3 emissions from broiler manure.  Treatments were incubated for 11 days at 25oC and 98% relative humidity. Ammonia was trapped in 0.1N H2SO4 and measured colorimetrically as NH4+-N, and CO2 was monitored with an infrared analyzer. Ammonia and CO2 emissions were suppressed by sodium bisulfate throughout the study. Wheat straw, wood shavings, and sawdust, with C (total) / N (total) > 50 or C (biodegradable) / N >20, had low NH3 emissions. Total NH3 emissions from peanut hulls and shredded paper were the highest, probably due to peanut hulls’ low C/N ratio and shredded paper’s alkaline pH. No significant interactions on NH3 emissions were detected between acidifying amendments and bedding materials.

Handout (.pdf format, 154.0 kb)