Chemical composition of compost from municipal waste in the context of use as fertiliser

Abstract

The study addresses the problem of assessment of the chemical properties of compost produced on the basis of organic fraction of municipal waste, including the quantity and quality of organic matter. Six composts originating from central-eastern Poland were included in the research. The following analyses were performed: pH; salinity; content of C, N, P, K and heavy metals, fractional composition of organic matter (after decalcification, bitumens, fulvic acids, humic acids and post-extraction residue) and properties of humic acids (elemental composition and spectrophotometric properties). The analysed composts were characterised by a similar chemical nature. They were considered to be chemically and biologically silised. They were characterised by a significant potential for soil enrichment in soil humus and biogenic elements. The content of heavy metals in the tested composts did not constitute a barrier to their use as a fertiliser. The contribution of carbon of humic substances (separated by 0.