IIT Guwahati Researchers Develop Organic Waste Management Solution

Researchers at IIT Guwahati, from WMRG, have devised an innovative method to support municipal corporations in effective management of organic waste. Additionally, this method has been used to create a soil conditioner enriched with nutrients. Check details here 

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati researchers have developed a biodegradation technique that addresses the issues of waste management. The researchers from the Waste Management Research Group (WMRG) at IIT Guwahati led by Prof Ajay S Kalamdhad worked out a two-stage biodegradation technique that can help the municipal corporations in managing the organic waste collected. 

Talking about the waste management technique, Prof Ajay S. Kalamdhad, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT-G said, “We optimised the RDC technique and combined it with vermicomposting to reduce the duration of biodegradation. The earthworms, eisenia fetida, can acclimatise faster to partially degraded organic matter from the drum compost and produce vermicompost in just 27 days.“ 

IIT Guwahati's Waste Management Technique 

The technique combines Rotary Drum Composting with Vermicomposting (RDVC) which results in an efficient and environmentally friendly process and enables municipal corporations to derive value-added products from organic waste.

This two-stage biodegradation technique can convert diverse organic feedstocks into nutrient-dense compost within just 20 days. Other biodegradation techniques would require 2-3 months. However, the limitation of RDC is inferior compost quality. The produced product has been marketed as Mati Dhan Organic Vermicompost Fertilizer Manure for Plants. 

The innovative process introduced by the Waste Management Research Group at IIT Guwahati has the possibility to reshape organic waste treatment facilities globally, providing an environmentally compatible solution to mitigate contamination hazards and produce an outstanding soil conditioner. 

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