Ash from Poultry Manure Incineration as a Substitute for Phosphorus Fertiliser.

The goal of the tests was to separate a phosphate concentrate from ash and to assess its fertiliser use efficiency in anthropogenic land. Ash obtained from poultry manure incineration is an interesting fertiliser, as it contains both of the necessary nutrients, i.e., phosphorus and potassium. The ash selected for the tests contained 15.73 wt% P2O5, and 6.75 wt% K2O. CaO also constituted the main component (44.79 wt%). Phosphorus in crystalline form was present as hydroxyapatite and carbonate apatite. The first stage, applied in order to separate a phosphate concentrate from ash, involved a number of physicochemical methods: (i) a method based on grain wettability differences; (ii) a method based on grain density differences; and (iii) methods based on size distribution differences. Wet sieving made it possible to separate a fraction with a P2O5 content of 24.56 wt%. The second stage, applied to assess fertiliser use efficiency, involved cassette tests as well as pot and field cultivation using as fertiliser, the obtained product as well as raw ash and commercial ones. Therefore, the conducted research allowed for the development of a methodology for the management of ash from the incineration of a poultry manure and their use as a substitute for phosphorus fertiliser. The tested material was applied in various doses. Using the obtained phosphate concentrate at a dose of 95 g/m3 resulted in a comparable yield as in the case of the commercial fertiliser at a dose recommended by the producer (75 g/m3). Unprocessed ash had to be used in larger amounts, i.e., 165 g/m3, to have a comparable yield as a commercial fertiliser.

Possibilities of Practical Use of Historical Distributions of Ash, Sulfur and Mercury Contents in Commercial Steam Coal of the USCB.

In the process of extracting hard coal, extensive databases are created on its quality parameters. A statistical assessment was made of the ash, sulfur, and mercury content of commercial coals produced in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin (USCB). The statistical methods applied: non-parametric tests of compatibility for two populations, parametric significance tests, and non-parametric tests of compatibility for the three populations, showed that the distributions of ash and sulfur content in 2014 and 2015 are comparable and the average values are similar. Statistical tests indicated significant differences in the mercury content distributions and their variances. This demonstrates the need for ongoing monitoring of mercury content in commercial coals, as a prediction of mercury content from historical data is hardly possible.