Title
Document Type
Presentation
Publication Date
4-2020
Disciplines
Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering | Industrial Technology
Course Number and Title
TSM 416: Technology Capstone
Department
Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
Major
Agricultural Systems Technology (Kvistad, Raver, Oeltjenbruns)
Instructors
Michael Anderson and Jacek A. Koziel
Problem Statement
Smithfield Hog Production has processing facilities throughout the state of Iowa as well as contract finishing sites where producers grow out their swine. The hog manure from these sites is pumped into a slurry store for storage until it can be pumped onto the fields in the spring or fall. The slurry stores stand 19-feet-tall, have a diameter of 120-feet, and hold 1.2-million-gallons of manure. The slurry stores have no cover so they are open to all weather like rain and snow.
Most years, evaporation does not equal precipitation which results in a decreased manure holding capacity and an increased cost to pump the manure. The precipitation that accumulates in the tank also lowers the per gallon value of the nutrients as a crop fertilizer due to dilution. A cover for the slurry tanks would eliminate precipitation from entering the tank.
Recommended Citation
Kvistad, Hunter; Raver, Brent; Oeltjenbruns, Owen; Anderson, Michael; and Koziel, Jacek A., "Nutrient Storage Cover" (2020). TSM 416 Technology Capstone Projects. 90.
https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/tsm416/90