MXPA99003466A - A method for throwing out food scraps at low and ordinary temperatures using microbes and apparatus for carrying out said method - Google Patents

Abstract

Se expone un método para desechar desperdicios de alimentos a temperaturas bajas y ordinarias y un aparato para llevar a cabo el método. Las bacterias activas aeróbicas y facultativas se co-cultivan sobre portadores secos estériles. Las bacterias co-cultivadas se alimentan hacia un aparato que contiene a los portadores en una cantidad predeterminada de desperdicios de alimento al día. Los desperdicios de alimento se mezclan con los portadores a intervalos regulares a una temperatura de 25-35§C, de manera que los desperdicios de alimento se descomponen por la acción de fermentación y/u oxidación de la bacteria sobre los portadores. Esta descomposición se lleva a cabo en el aparato que comprende:un recipiente hecho de un material térmicamente aislante;un tanque fermentador con una caída de desperdicio y un eje hexagonal, la caída de desperdicio se abre y cierra mediante una tapa con la ayuda de un sujetador tipo resorte a fin de no golpear con el tanque fermentador, el eje hexagonal se extiende a través del tanque fermentador y tiene seis aletas de agitación, sobre cada una de las cuales están montadas dos aletas auxiliares con una sección transversal de p, las aletas de agitación se colocan a unángulo de 60§entre dos aletas adyacentes y funcionan para mezclar los desperdicios de alimento junto con la ayuda de las aletas auxiliares, y un medio desodorante con un tubo de escape, el tanque fermentador y el medio desodorante están instalados dentro del recipiente, en donde los desperdicios de alimento pueden descomponerse completamente con la producción de poco olor desagradable.

Description

METHOD FOR DISPOSING OF FOOD WASTES X * AT LOW AND ORDINARY TEMPERATURES USING MICROBIOS, AND APPARATUS TO CARRY OUT SUCH METHOD BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for disposing of food waste at low and ordinary temperatures using microbes and to an apparatus for carrying out the method. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for disposing of food waste completely and cleanly, producing little unpleasant odor.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREVIOUS TECHNIQUE Food wastes are organic masses that can be decomposed almost completely to stool if the adequate conditions are provided, such as temperature and oxygen supply. For example, as food waste, consisting essentially of C, H, N, and O, provides nutrients to microorganisms, if the organic waste is put in a certain apparatus, or where several microorganisms are abundant and under suitable conditions, the rubbish can P12S4 / 99MX eventually become building blocks or final products, for example C02, H20, N02 and the like. Therefore, even when food waste is disposed of daily in a certain place or apparatus, waste piles are not found there for a significant period of time. When the condition factors, for example temperature, oxygen, nutrition and the like, are adequately provided, the microbial population passing through a balanced growth increases by approximately twice over a period of time. After this exponential phase, it excretes enzymes out of the cells. These extracellular enzymes (exo-enzymes) are inactivated after they work to break down the macromolecules into smaller molecules, suitable for being digested by microbes. Because enzymes are necessary for microbes to grow and proliferate, they are continuously expressed during the growth of microbes. Therefore, microbes can be used to easily dispose of food waste without causing contamination. Organic matter is usually decomposed in an aerobic or anaerobic form according to the enzyme fermentation patterns. Aerobic fermentation does not produce annoying odors, but it is of slow speed. On the other hand, anaerobic fermentation produces a large amount of P1264 / 99MX gas, which produces an unpleasant smell, but leads to rapid catabolism.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION With this background in mind, the present invention has the object of providing a method for cleanly disposing of food waste. Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus in which a large amount of food waste is disposed of continuously and in a clean manner. According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for disposing of food waste at low and ordinary temperatures, comprising the steps of: co-cultivating facultative and aerobic active bacteria on dry sterile carriers, feeding to an apparatus containing the carriers, a predetermined amount of food waste per day, for six months, and mix the carriers with the waste of food fed, at a regular interval and at a temperature of 25 to 35 ° C, where the food waste is decomposed during 6 months by fermentation and / or oxidation of the bacteria that are in the carriers. According to another aspect of this P1264 / 99MX invention, an apparatus for disposing of food waste at ordinary low temperatures is provided, comprising: a container made of a thermally insulating material, a fermentation tank with a falling waste and a hexagonal shaft, the waste fall closes and opens with a lid with the help of a spring-type fastener, so that the lid does not hit the fermentation tank, the hexagonal shaft extends through the fermentation tank and has six stirring fins, on each of which are mounted 2 auxiliary fins with a cross section of p, stirring fins are placed at an angle of 60 ° to the additional adjacent fins and function to mix the food waste, together with the auxiliary fins, and a deodorizing medium with an exhaust pipe, the fermentation tank and the deodorizing medium They are installed inside the container, where the food residues can be completely decomposed producing little unpleasant odor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The above objects and other objects and aspects of the invention will become apparent from the following description of the modalities that are made with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: P12S4 / 99MX Figure 1 is a partially sectioned perspective view showing the apparatus of the present invention; Figure 2 is a rear perspective view showing an apparatus having heating wires, according to a first aspect of the present invention; Figure 3 is a rear perspective view showing an apparatus having mounted a fan heater, according to a second embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4 is a cross section showing the apparatus according to the first embodiment, taken along line A-A '; and Figure 5 is a partially enlarged perspective view showing a fermenting tank according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention pertains to a method for cleaning food waste by the use of microbes. Microbes are saprophytic bacteria that exist ubiquitously in soils, rivers and streams. There are available those that can decompose to organic matter, for example carbohydrates, proteins, fats, starches, cellulose, P1264 / 99MX etc. and preferably those that are aerobic or facultative. After growing them in a broth, the available bacteria are inoculated and co-cultivated on carriers. Useful carriers are sawdust, rice bran, peat, wood chips and porous ceramic balls. Before the inoculation the carriers are sterilized and dried until they contain a water content of 10%. These carriers are placed in a place that is stored at a temperature of 25 to 35 ° C and mixed with food waste at regular intervals for a period of time. During this treatment, food waste is broken down by the oxidation and fermentation actions of the co-cultivated bacteria on the carriers. For this purpose, an apparatus is provided which is equipped with a temperature controller system, a mixing system, an air supply system and a deodorizing system, according to the present invention. A better understanding of the invention may be obtained through the following examples which are established to illustrate it, but which should not be interpreted in a limiting sense.

EXAMPLE I: Selection of Microbes First Group (Aerobacter, Enterobacter spp.): P12S4 / 99MX * Select bacteria that can oxidize food waste consisting mainly of C, H and 0 in carbon dioxide and water in the presence of oxygen molecules, as represented by (CH20) x? C02 + H20 and can ferment them in the absence of oxygen molecules, as represented by (CH20) x? CH3COOH. Second Group (Bacillus spp.): During growth, strains belonging to this group excrete exo-enzymes that break down cellular macromolecules into small molecules that are suitable for transporting themselves inside the cells of their own strains or other strains. Examples of the exo-enzymes include lipases, proteases and amylases that hydrolyse lipids, proteins and starches, respectively. Therefore, the strains selected for this group can convert the suspended solids, for example fats, proteins and starches, into soluble suspended solids that are now available for use for intracellular digestion by microbes. Third Group (Pseudomonas spp.): Like the first group of bacteria, bacteria in this group oxidize food waste consisting mainly of C, H, and O, forming carbon dioxide and water, as expressed by (CH20) x ? C02 + H20. In addition, these bacteria can break down the waste that P1264 / 99MX result from petrochemical materials, for example H2S, hard detergents (ABS), mild detergents (LAS), N-hexane, phenol, hydrocarbons, etc. Fourth Group (Cellulomonas spp.): Bacteria of this genus hydrolyze cellulose by converting the a-glycosidic bonds into ß-glycosidic bonds that are more easily used by bacteria. Fifth Group (Rhodopseudomonas spp.): Under an aerobic condition, this bacterium functions like the Pseudomonas bacteria. On the other hand, in the absence of oxygen molecules, the bacteria undergo fermentative growth. During fermentation, the energy source (CH20) x decomposes in two steps: (CH20) x? CH3COOH; CH3COOH? CH4 + C02. The selection of the bacteria is made so that it can restrict this two-step fermentation and effect the CH3COOH reaction? C02 + H20. The selected strains can play an important role in removing the unpleasant odor factor, CH4 gas. Sixth Group (Nitrosomonas spp.): When proteins break down, ammonium (NH3-N) is produced. These nitrifying bacteria oxidize ammonium to nitrite (N02-N). This oxidation must be carried out in the presence of oxygen molecules in the following formula: 2NH3 + 302? 2N02 + 2H20 + 2H +. Seventh Group (Nitrobacter spp.): These P1264 / 99MX nitrifying bacteria oxidize nitrite (N02-N), a stable compound, to give nitrate (N03-N), which plays an important role in the production of valuable food waste as fertilizers. Like the Nitrosomonas, these bacteria work actively at low and ordinary temperatures under a weak aerobic condition, in the following way: 2N02 ~ + 02-2N03 ~.

EXAMPLE II: Co-Culturing Microbes on Carriers The carriers, for example sawdust, rice bran, peat, wood chips and porous ceramic balls, were sterilized and dried so that they had a water content of 1%. The microbes belonging to the seven groups of Example II were co-cultivated on these carriers. These bacteria carriers, which are sold under the trade name "Bio-Chip", were used to dispose of the food waste in an apparatus that will be described in Example III.

EXAMPLE III: Apparatus for Discarding Food Waste at Low and Ordinary Temperatures. The present invention provides an optimum apparatus wherein the Bio-Chip, a carrier of bacteria on which the bacteria of Example I are co-cultured, can be used. Normally, organic matter P12S4 / 99MX decomposes faster under anaerobic conditions than under aerobic conditions. For example, the aerobic decomposition rate of organic materials is 7 times higher than the anaerobic decomposition rate. With this in mind, the present invention used facultative bacteria. In addition, since anaerobic fermentation produces unpleasant odor gas, aerobic bacteria were also used. These bacteria are co-cultivated on a carrier that is fed into the device, along with food waste. The apparatus of the invention will be described together with the accompanying drawings. Referring to Figure 1, there is a partially sectioned perspective view of an apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 1, the apparatus comprises a container 25 made of a thermally insulating material, a fermentor tank 18 with a fall of debris 1 that is opened and closed by a cover 3 with the aid of a spring type fastener 4, and a deodorizing medium 5 with an exhaust pipe 6, the fermenting tank 18 and the deodorizing medium 5 are installed inside the container. A hexagonal shaft 21 extending through the fermentor tank 18 is fixed to the fermenter tank by means of a bearing adapter 9 and is directly connected to the fermenter tank.

P1264 / 99MX a rotating gear 10 rotating by rotary energy transmitted by a chain 11 from an operating gear 13 mounted on an engine 14. The tension of the chain is controlled by a tension roller 12. Figure 2 shows the apparatus in a lower perspective view. As shown in this figure, the fermenting tank 18 comprises a plurality of heating wires 29 on its surface to preserve the interior of the fermenter tank 18 at a predetermined temperature, for example 25-35 ° C. Six agitation fins, each with two auxiliary fins with a cross section of p, extend at an angle range of 60 ° from a circumference of the axis 21 with respect to a hexagonal cross section, as shown in Figure 4 A second embodiment according to the present invention is shown in Figure 3. In this embodiment, an air supply system comprising a fan heater 299 and a forced tube 300, are provided in place of the heating wires 29. of Figure 2. With reference to Figure 5, there is an enlarged view of a fermenting tank 18 of the second embodiment, wherein a plurality of air inlets 301 are connected to the forced tube 300 at a regular distance.

P1254 / 99MX On a superior site of the fermentation tank 18, an exhaust gas filter 2 is provided, from which the exhaust gas pipe 6 passes through the deodorizing medium towards an external surface on the rear side of the container. The exhaust gas, for example C02, which is generated from the food waste in the fermenter tank 18, is passed from the exhaust gas filter 2 through the exhaust gas pipe 6 to the deodorizing medium 5, in where the offensive odors are removed by a neutralizing agent and a layer of activated carbon, and the gas is vented outwardly along the exhaust gas pipe 6. At the other top site of the fermenter tank 18, an air inlet 8 it is equipped with a fan (not shown) to supply a necessary amount of air for the microbes inside the fermenter tank 18. Alternatively, the deodorant means 5 may comprise a honeycomb coated with platinum, instead of a neutralizing agent and a layer of activated carbon, to remove offensive odors generated from food waste. Next, a detailed description of the operation of the apparatus is provided. In order to use the Bio-Chips of the invention, an apparatus for decomposing food waste is needed, as shown in Figure 1. A minimum amount of P1264 / 99MX Oxygen (air) is supplied to the interior of fermenter tank 18 to ferment food waste quickly and without odors. In this aspect, Bio-Chips and food waste are mixed for as short a time as possible to decompose food waste only with the air that is administered. For example, a stopwatch or a gear operation may be used so that there is a continuously repeated 30 minute cycle where food waste and Bio-Chips are mixed for 5 minutes, followed by a 25 minute break. During the break, the decomposition of food waste proceeds rapidly through anaerobic microbes. If decomposition proceeds only in the absence of oxygen molecules, seriously unpleasant or offensive odors are produced. Therefore, anaerobic fermentation is rapidly induced just before the moment when the decomposition becomes completely anaerobic decomposition and then, aerobic fermentation is caused by the mixing of the food waste for 5 minutes, with the use of a chronometer or a gear operation. Food waste can contain water in an amount of up to 80-85%. The water is consumed slowly while it is absorbed in the middle of the Bio-Chips, for example sawdust, peat, P12S4 / 99MX wood chips, porous ceramic balls and the like. In the apparatus of the present invention, the temperature of the fermenting tank is maintained at 25-35 ° C and can be raised to 40-45 ° C by the heat generated during fermentation, consuming water. The temperature inside the fermenting tank increases rapidly during fermentation but decreases slowly to a low or ordinary temperature (35 ° C or less) by means of a fan. Fermentation, a process in which microbes break down organic materials, is divided into three types according to temperature: fermentation at low temperature at 30 ° C or less, fermentation at medium temperature at 30-45 ° C and fermentation at high temperature at 45-ßO ° C. This fermentation at high temperature requires a means of collecting water because the fermentation proceeds quickly. In addition, fermentation at high temperature forces organic materials to decompose rapidly in acetate, CH4, C02 and / or H2S, producing unpleasant odors. Therefore, a special deodorizing medium is needed for fermentation at high temperature. In contrast, low or medium temperature fermentation does not produce acetate, which is significantly responsible for the unpleasant odor generated during the fermentation of food waste. Some odors, which are P12S4 / 99MX unavoidable, are completely removed by the deodorizing medium 5 in the apparatus. As already mentioned, the acetate production process, its subsequent process (acetate? CH4 + C02) and the production process of H2S is restricted in the waste apparatus of the present invention. For this reason there is an advantage of no odor shedding, the apparatus of the invention can be installed inside or outside the homes or establishments that handle food. In order to uniformly mix the Bio-Chips of the invention with the waste foods, a stirring fin extends from one side of the hexagonal axis 21. Thus, a stirring fin forms an angle of 60 ° with respect to a additional adjacent fin. Auxiliary fins 20 with a p-shaped cross section are provided to the stirring fin to assist the stirring fins during mixing. Auxiliary fins are also useful for extracting Bio-Chips when they have to be re-supplied. As for the spring-type fastener 4, it works to dampen the significant weight of the lid 3, in order to absorb the blow that is provided to the fermenter tank by the lid 3. In this way the damage that could occur to the apparatus when the lid 3 is hit, is prevented by the fastener 4.

P1264 / 99MX When lid 3 opens and closes, mixing stops and starts automatically, respectively. In this regard, a limit spring-type switch 7 is provided which is fixed to a contact between the cover 3 and the fermentor tank 18 and is connected to the electric circuit for the mixing axis. When the lid is opened to feed the food waste into the fermenter tank, if mixing continues to take place, an unpleasant view is observed and an unpleasant odor is released. Therefore, it is preferred that mixing ceases when the lid is opened. Against one? temperature drop inside the fermentor tank 18, heating wires 29 or a fan heater 299 are mounted in the rear part of the fermenter tank 18. For example, when it is cold, for example in a winter climate, the heating wires or The fan heater works automatically to keep the inside of the fermenter tank at a temperature of 25 ° C or higher. On the other hand, at a temperature higher than 35 ° C only the fan of the fan heater 299 or a deodorant fan (not shown) of the deodorizing medium 5 automatically work to lower the temperature of the fermenter tank 18 to a preferred range. In fermentation at low temperature and P1264 / 99MX ordinary according to the present invention, the odor that is generated during the fermentation of food waste is restricted as much as possible. However, as the odors that the food itself has are unavoidable, the deodorant 5 is provided for this purpose. The gas that provides the odor inside the fermentor tank enters the exhaust gas filter 2 and flows through the exhaust pipe 6 to the deodorizing medium 5 where the odor is removed by the neutralizing agent and the activated carbon layer, and the odorless gas is expelled through the exhaust pipe 6. Alternatively, an oxidant system with platinum catalyst can be used in place of the neutralizing agent and the activated carbon layer, to remove the odor. Optionally, an instrument panel can be provided to detect the temperature and humidity of the fermentor tank 18, the target temperature and humidity, and the practical temperature and humidity of the platinum oxidizing catalyst system.

EXAMPLE IV: Process for the Disposal of Food Waste Using the Apparatus. A waste apparatus comprising a 700 liter fermenting tank was made according to the description of Example 3. This apparatus contained the bacterial carriers, Bio-Chips, and was adjusted to 6.

P1264 / 99MX months from June 24, 1996 to December 24, 1996, in a massive residential district where 300 households were born. The food waste was fed two to three times to the apparatus in a total amount of 100 kg per day. A fermentation cycle in which the mixing of the food waste was carried out for 5 minutes, followed by a 25 minute break, repeating the cycle while the fermentor tank was kept at 25-35 ° C. During the fermentation, a clean state was maintained without offensive odors, for example as those attributed by H2S, CH4 and acetate. As described above, the food waste disposal apparatus can effectively ferment food waste at 25-35 ° C both in the presence and absence of oxygen molecules, so that food waste can decompose rapidly while Odors occur in small quantities during fermentation. Therefore, the present invention is very useful in the environmental industry. The present invention has been described in an illustrative manner and it should be understood that the terminology used is intended to be descriptive and not limiting in nature. Many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible P12e4 / 99MX the light of the previous teachings. Therefore, it should be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced in other ways than those specifically described herein.

P1264 / 99MX

Claims (7)

1. NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION Having described the present invention, it is considered as a novelty and, therefore, the content of the following CLAIMS is claimed as property: 1. A method for disposing of food waste at low and ordinary temperatures, comprising steps of: co-cultivate "aerobic and facultative bacteria active on dry sterile carriers, feed to an apparatus containing carriers a predetermined amount of food waste per day, for six months, and mixing the carriers with waste fed food , at a regular interval at a temperature of 25-35 ° C, whereby the food waste is decomposed during 6 months by the action of fermentation and / or oxidation of the bacteria on the carriers 2. A method according to the claim 1, wherein the aerobic and facultative bacteria are selected from Aerobacter spp., Bacillus spp.,
2. Pseudomonas spp., Cellulomonas spp., Rhodopseudomonas spp., Nitrosomonas spp., Nitrobacter spp. and combinations thereof. 3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the sterile dry carriers are selected from the
3. P1254 / 99MX group consisting of sawdust, rice bran, peat, wood chips, ceramic balls and combinations thereof
4. 4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the mixing step is carried out by repeating a cycle of mixed where the food wastes and carriers are shaken well for 5 minutes, followed by a pause of 25 minutes
5. 5. An apparatus for disposing of food waste at ordinary low temperatures, comprising: a container made of a material thermally insulator; a fermenter tank with a drop of waste and a hexagonal shaft, a drop of waste that is opened and closed by a cover with the help of a pinch spring type in order not to hit the fermenter tank, the hexagonal shaft extends through the fermenting tank and has six agitation fins, on each of which are mounted 2 auxiliary fins with a cross section of p, the agitation fins and they are placed at an angle of 60 ° with respect to the additional adjacent fins and function to mix the food waste together with the auxiliary fins; and and a deodorizing medium with a pipeline P1264 / 99MX exhaust, fermentor tank and deodorizing medium are installed inside the container, where food waste can be completely decomposed with little production of unpleasant odor. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the deodorant medium comprises a deodorant system consisting of a neutralizing agent and an activated carbon layer or a platinum catalyst oxidant system wherein a honeycomb matrix is coated with platinum. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the fermenting tank has an outer surface on which a plurality of heating wires are mounted or where a plurality of air inlets are connected which are connected to an air supply system comprising a fan heater and a forced tube. P1264 / 99MX SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A method for disposing of food waste at low and ordinary temperatures and an apparatus for carrying out the method is discussed. Aerobic and facultative active bacteria are co-cultured on sterile dry carriers. The co-cultured bacteria are fed to an apparatus that contains the carriers in a predetermined amount of food waste per day. The food waste is mixed with the carriers at regular intervals at a temperature of 25-35 ° C, so that the food waste is decomposed by the action of fermentation and / or oxidation of the bacteria on the carriers. This decomposition is carried out in the apparatus comprising: a container made of a thermally insulating material; a fermenter tank with a waste drop and a hexagonal shaft, the waste fall is opened and closed by means of a cover with the help of a spring-type fastener so as not to hit with the fermenting tank, the hexagonal shaft extends through the fermentor tank and has six agitation fins, on each of which are mounted two auxiliary fins with a cross section of p, the agitation fins are placed at an angle of 60 ° between two adjacent fins and work to mix the waste of food together with the help of P12S4 / 99MX auxiliary fins, and a deodorizing medium with an exhaust pipe, the fermenter tank and the deodorizing medium are installed inside the container, where the food waste can be completely decomposed with the production of little unpleasant odor. P1264 / 99MX