Influence of inoculating microbes on municipal sewage sludge composting

Abstract

The influence of Ilkompost and Micromix bacterial consortium inoculation during sewage sludge (SS) with wheat straw (WS) composting was assessed. The effect of inoculation on compost quality parameters such as pH, temperature, nutrient contents and C/N, bacterial and fungal population were determined. Compared to the control treatment, the temperature of piles and population of microorganism increased after inoculated bacterial consortiums at the beginning of compost. But, WS addition did not effect on compost quality parameters and microbial population. Fungal and bacterial population, the peak temperature, or heating rate, of Micromix bacterial consortium based on Streptomyces pratensis, Bacillus mesentericus, Azotobacter chroococcum inoculated treatments was clearly higher than that of Ilkompost bacterial consortium based on Pediococcus pentosaceus, Streptomyces sindenensis, Bacillus megaterium inoculated treatments.