Creating Compost to Heat Water

Overview

Objectives/Goals The objective of my experiment was to harness the heat of decomposing organic material to heat water. If water is pumped through tubing surrounded by compost, then the water can absorb usable heat because compost piles generate heat as a result of decomposition. Methods/Materials Materials: 4 Buckets with lids 4 Thermometers 2 Water pumps 24 Liters of water 5 Gallons of organic material (green grass, brown leaves, soil, banana peels) 2 Forty-feet tubing Procedure: a. Construct a compost pile in a bucket with a coil of plastic tubing running through it. b. Using a water pump, circulate water through the tubing from another bucket. c. Create an identical setup without using compost. d. Compare the water temperature of the control setup and the compost setup. Results The water in the bucket that was cycled through the compost was substantially warmer than the control bucket. There was as much as a 7°C difference between the two buckets of water. Conclusions/Discussion The purpose of this experiment was to heat water by utilizing the heat produced from decomposing organic material. The results suggest the heat of decomposing organic material may be harnessed to heat water effectively.

Competition history

• CSEF 2002 Environmental Engineering · Entry S0803

Resources

• CSEF project summary ↗

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