Current Understanding of Manure Pit Foaming, Barn Explosions, and Safety Precautions

Transcription

1 9//1 Current Understanding of Manure Pit Foaming, Barn Explosions, and Safety Precautions Thank you for participating in PorkBridge To start the presentation, advance one slide by pressing enter or the down arrow or right arrow key. To see the additional piece on this CD, click on the link below. Larry D. Jacobson, Professor BBE Dept.; Univ. of Minnesota, St. Paul Campus Phone # jacob7@umn.edu Coauthor - David R. Schmidt, Assistant Extension Engineer Pit pumping-explosion release1-1-9 (docx) For presentation at Aug, 1 - PorkBridge Series Foam Coming Through Slats 1 Foam Coming out of Pumpout feet of foam Barn Explosion (fall, 9) in same barn 3 More on Foaming Occasional reports of foaming in last 3 to years n In past year (since summer, 9) more reports of foaming in Midwest states n Is foaming related to recent explosions/ fire? n Barn explosions during past yr in IA, MN, IL. had manure pit foam some did not Flash fires reported at other sites some with crust, some with clear surfaces Some 1

2 More on Foaming Reduces manure storage volume Pigs get dirty Foam captures methane... Methane is flammable More on Foaming Often occurs in one pit or barn but not in others on the same production site Becomes a problem over time (1- years) once established can be very fast growing General Explanation- Microbial imbalance in manure pit probably related to diet, water source, climate, and other factors!! 7 Dangers of Foam Methane is always produced during anaerobic breakdown of manure in deep ( to 8 ft) pits. Foam captures methane and when bubbles are broken, through agitation or other means, it RAPIDLY releases methane. Methane concentrations inside the foam is -7% which is above explosive concentration When foam bubbles are broken, methane dilutes in barn space above pit and becomes explosive Dilution of methane to -% concentration makes it flammable (explosive). Foam Disruption No Foam Barn Brown = manure Red = methane at high concentrations Yellow = methane at flammable concentrations Foam Barn Foam breaks causing large release of methane 8 9 Precautions and Management Foam Disruption releases methane (and HS) Agitation releases both HS and methane Spray washing Sprinkling Pig activity Ignition sources welders, heaters, cigarettes Importance of Ventilation This situation often has occurred with low animal numbers or empty barns Minimum ventilation ( -1 cfm/pig space) may or may not dilute the methane to below explosion limits. To provide some margin of safety, provide to 3 cfm/pig space of ventilation with wall fans. 1 11

3 U of MN s BBE Dept actions since fall-9 Funding received from U of MN Exp. Station s RARF to determine cause and find solution to problem (regional effort IL, IA, NE, SD): Manure pit foaming sites visits Surveys of contract finishers for several midwest pig finishing companies Manure analysis from foaming and nonfoaming sites Information gathering approaches Visited several MN sites that have experienced manure pit foaming and/or explosions/fires Distributed Mail/Online surveys to several Midwest pig producers networks/companies Used following questionnaire during both site visits and surveys 1 13 General Informa,on DIET Barn(s) Feed supplier Room(s) Produc,on type DDGS level (%) ? ? ? ? Building age/year built Change in DDGS this year Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Room Capacity (head) Waterer type Change in water usage this year? Feeder type How oden pit pumped per year? 1X X 3X or more 1X X 3X or more 1X X 3X or more 1X X 3X or more Phytase used Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Change in Phytase this year Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? An,bio,cs used (as diet addi,ve) Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Pit addi,ves used? Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes No Change in an,bio,cs this year Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Name Dosage How oden Soaps or detergents used? Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes No Name Dosage How oden? Any major feed spills? Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes No How much? Growth enhancements used Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Change in gr. enhancmnt. this year Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Other feed addi,ves used? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Name Change in other feed add. this yr Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? When? 1 1 Foaming and Crus,ng Crust Present? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Which ac,vi,es occurred in room before the incident? (circle when ac,vity took place) Average depth of crust Change in crust this year? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Pumping Agita,on Barn washed Barn emp,ed Welding Foam present? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Does manure foam during pumping? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? Yes No? min. before incident min. before incident min. before incident min. before incident min. before incident Average depth of foam Maximum depth of foam Change in foam this year? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? Inc. Dec. No change? First,me no,ced foam A[empts to remove foam Were they successful? Other Ac,vi,es: Describe incident: Fires/Explosions Occurring when? Ven,la,on rates immediately before incident: None Less than minimum Minimum Greater than minimum Building where incident occurred: When did incident occur? (date): Room where incident occurred: Which ac,vi,es occurred in room before the incident? (circle when ac,vity took place)

4 Summary of Paper Survey: Grower Group N3 producers out of 73 possible : 9% response rate InformaFon on 1 rooms Foam 18 producers have foam (8%) 1 rooms have foam (%) Most farms that have foam have it in all rooms: of the farms that reported foam, 17 had foam in all rooms while 1 had rooms with and without foam. 3 producers reported or more of foam in rooms producers reported foam when pumping Only one feed spill reported and there was no foam or fire in the room/ building Capacity Pumping Freq. Waterer (head) Age (years) (per year) Percent of rooms with foam and without foam to have selected characteristics % 1% % 3% % % % 7% 8% 9% 1% Crust 1x x Rooms with foam (n = 1) 3x & + " foam - " foam 1- Rooms with no foam (n = 11) 3- No foam Nipple Cup Fires 1 fire The fire occurred in a room with of foam. Feeder Dry wet-dry Type: Finishing Pit Additives DDGS level in diet % % 3% 3% % % 1% 1% Percent of DDGS in diet: Grower Group N3 Gestation Finishing Summary of Online Survey: Grower Group Z 8 producers parfcipated out of 8 possible: 3% response rate InformaFon on 83 rooms Foam 7 farms have foam (%) 1 rooms with foam (%) 8 rooms had 18 of foam 13 rooms had of foam Most farms that have foam have it in all rooms: of the farms that reported foam, had foam in all rooms while had rooms both with and without foam. Two feed spills reported, both - tons of feed. There was no foaming, crusfng or fires in either room. % % Dec-7 Mar-8 Jun-8 Sep-8 Dec-8 Mar-9 Jun-9 Sep-9 Dec-9 Fires fires: one fire, one explosion Both fires occurred in rooms with 18 of foam. 1 Survey results from Grower Groups Z and N3: Number of rooms with foam by county Survey Results from Grower Group N3: Partial Correlation Chart Fire Foam Foam: Crust - 18" Fire 1 Foam.13 1 Foam: - 18" Crust x Pumping Frequency x (times/year) 3x Building Age (years) Finishing WF Production Type W/WM Nursery GDU Capacity (head) Nipple Drinker Cup Nipple & Cup Dry Feeder Wet- dry Feed spills Pit Additive

5 Midwest Labs Manure Testing Nutrient Concentra,ons of Swine Manure Samples 8 Test Cost Basic Manure and Sludge Package, includes: $ Moisture/Total Solids Total Nitrogen Phosphate Potash Sulfur Calcium Magnesium Sodium Iron Manganese Copper Zinc ph Ammonia nitrogen Lagoon Water Package, includes: $ Conductance Kjeldahl nitrogen Phosphorus Potassium (other items that are included in the Basic Pkg) Chemical Oxygen Demand $ Vola,le Organic Acids $3 Aerobic Plate Count $1 Anaerobic Plate Count $1 Sulfide (EPA 93B) $ Fa[y Acid Profile (all fa[y acids) $1 Lipid Analysis (total fats) $18 TOTAL $ Nutrient Concentra,on (lbs/1- gal) No DDGS, No Foam DDGS, No Foam DDGS, No Foam DDGS, Foam DDGS, Foam Ca Cu Fe K Mg Mn Na P S Zn Total N NH3 N Org. N Total Fat Per Serving of Swine Manure ph Fat per serving (%) 1. ph Fa[y Acid Profiles of Foaming and Non Foaming Manure Fa[y Acid Profiles of Manure with DDGS and without DDGS 3 3 No DDGS Percent of Total Fat 3 1 No Foam 1 No Foam No Foam 3 Foam 1 Foam Percent of Total Fat 3 1 DDGS 1 DDGS 3 DDGS DDGS : 1:1t 1:1c 17: 17:1 18: 18:1c 18:t 18:c 19: 18:3a : :1 : :3 : : : : : 3: : :1 Fa[y Acids (by Carbon Number) : 1:1t 1:1c 17: 17:1 18:18:1c 18:t 18:c 19:18:3a : :1 : :3 : : : : : 3: : :1 Fa[y Acid (by Carbon Number) 9

6 Bacterial Plate Counts TS (%),, 1 18,, 1,, 1 Aerobic plate count Plate Counts (cfu/ml) 1,, 1,, 1,, 8,, Anaerobic plate count 8,,,,,, , 1, Chemical Oxygen Demand Best Management for Pit Pumping Chemical oxygen demand (mg/l) 1, 1, 8,,,, 3 Keep people out of building Ventilate properly Fans on Curtains closed if wind not blowing Ceiling inlets open Pumpouts sealed Mixing fans if available No rooster tailing No agitation until manure is below slats If possible, agitate intermittently 33 Bottom Line Be extremely cautious when foam is being broken Good ventilation with and without pigs (with or without foam) Other comments? There are no current recommendations to permanently prevent foam formation De-foaming agents will work but not permanently The causes and control of foaming continues being investigated by researchers at the University of Minnesota, Iowa State University, University of Illinois, and other institutions and organizations. 3 3

7 University of Minnesota Manure Management and Air Quality 3 7