The invention described herein relates to a method and relative means by which to transform both solid and liquid waste and biodegradable muds into fertilizer, utilizing earthworms for the purpose; a new process and contrivance in which earthworms -or suitable annelids in general- provide the vehicle by means of which to obtain mineral fertilizer for agricultural use, this in the guise of excrement passed from solid urban waste, liquid livestock waste, residual slime from water-purification, waste produced by foodstuffs, paper and textile factories -all such waste and refuse etc, being of a biodegradable nature,

The prior art takes in a method of transforming such waste wherein earthworms are laid out on the ground in strata or heaps to a maximum depth of 50 centimetres whereupon refuse -muddy waste in particular- is duly rained onto the worms and the area protected by a cover-sheet of canvas or the like_a The depth of such layers may not be increased as heat given off during fermentation of solid or only slightly-dilute organic waste heaped thus deeper would destroy the worms by overheating; the worms' demise would be brought on equally effectively by suffocation due to fumes given off by fermentation proper within the strata, there being little oxygen available as a rule; the depth-increase would be unproductive moreover, as worms would tend to occupy the upper 5 to 10 cm of the layer in greater number -driven thence by the need for necessary oxygen- and fail to work on a cost-effective amount of refuse; lastly, cold will also kill off earthworms should the layer be insufficiently deep as to produce a temperature of below 0°C, indeed the process of conversion already falls off in effectiveness below 5°C,

The prior art thus illustrated stands in need of improvement with regard to the following aspects: the need for an increased de pth of earthworm strata by means of which to economize on surface area demanded by the process; the need for extraction of fertilizer from the lower region of the heap by mechanical means thus obviating the necessity for employing skilled labour and special equipment -operatives being hard to find due to the somewhat hazardous hygiene conditions; a more rational system of introducing refuse of whatever kind -solid, liquid or mud- into the mass of worms; creation of an environment in which the worms may subsist whilst working with the greatest possible efficiency -viz, by avoiding overheating within the mass, and guarding against lack of oxygen, stagnation of fumes and temperature-drop below 5°C; in addition the need for dispensing both with dead time and with exposure of operatives to fumes and to pathogenic agents in the refuse itself.

The foregoing outline demonstrates the need for a solution to the technical problem posed by an earthworm medium conver- sim process capable of transforming any kind of biodegradable organic waste more rapidly, more profitable, with greater economy and in enhanced conditions of hygiene,

The invention resolves the above techincal problem by adopting anearthworm-medium conversion process which makes provision for: -introduction of air into the mass of worms and extraction there from of suffocation-inducing fumes; diffusion of water through the said mass in order to avoid overheating; uniform distribution of worms throughout the mass of liquid, mud or solid waste; protection against low temperatures; automatically operated extraction of fertilizer from the mass lower region; -the process being achieved in a continuous cycle with no.need whatever for specialized personnel, and to that end employing a contrivance wherein earthworms and organic refuse are deposited in an open-top silo of up to ten metres or more in height containing all such tubes as are necessary to introduction and distribution of mud and/or liquid waste, air and water as well as means for agitation thereof, solid refuse being simply dropped threinto from above; evacuation of fumes being brought about by an arrangement of perimeter gri ll es and suction and outlet chambers; the lower region of the silo tapered and terminating in a fast-discharge orifice whence an alternating tray-system despatches fertilizer onto a conveyor belt,

Advantages furnished by the invention are: drastic reduction in ground-area requirement for waste-to-fertilizer processes of the kind, by virtue of the vertically-expanded design; introduction of waste and extraction of fertilizer brought about at speed; even distribution of earthworms throughout the mass of refuse due to diffusion of cooling-water and oxygen therein and to removal of fermentation fumes therefrom, giving rise to a fertilizer porduction-rate of some hundred or two-hundred percent or more with respect to the traditional method as per the prior art; elimination of dead-time; marked reduction in labour; downgrading of operatives' skill- requirement; god conditions of hygiene, and reduction of the production cost per weight unit

Certain possible ways of embodying the invention are illustrated -by way of example- in the 6 sheets of drawings attached, in which:

• Fig 1 is the vertical section through the contrivance as embodied in a single outer casing, of cylindrical cross-section for instance;
• Fig 2 is the transverse section through II-II in Fig 1;
• Fig 3 is the section through III-III in Fig 1;
• Fig 4 shows the plan of the contrivance embodied as a battery of rectangular-section elements, seen in part-transverse-section as follows ; the first two lines of the battery at an intermediate height; the two central lines at a level below that of the discharge-orifice; the last two through a plane immediately below receptacles uppermost wherein solids, mud and water are deposited;
• Fig 5 is the vertical longitudinal section through V-V in Fig 4, seen on a larger scale the better to illustrate internal composition of the battery;
• Fig 6 is a transverse section through VI-VI in Fig 5 showing the arrangement whereby air is introduced and protein-fermentation fumes expelled -the latter being harmful to earthworms;
• Fig 7 is the vertical transverse section through VII-VII in Fig 4 which likewise shows the arrangement aforesaid of air-and-fume ducts, and illustrates refuse receptacles employed by the battery,

With reference to the drawings, 1 denotes a silo into which a load of earthworms 2 is introduced for the purpose -amongst other things- of transforming solid waste 3 brought to the silo-top by conveyor 4 into organic fertilizer 5; silo 1 is furnished with a cylindrical outer casing 6, a portion of whose wall 7 carries perforations 8 of some 5mm diameter forming a grille through which air A may enter at the one side whilst fumes E given off by fermentation of refuse may be extracted from the other by fans not illustrated in the drawing, entry A and exit E being worked in alternation; 9 denotes chambers located about grilles 7 - 8 created by sector- profile jackets 10 and the sector-portions 7 of casing 6; 11 denotes inlet/outlet conduits for air A and fumes E respectively; the lower end of silo 1 is in the form of an upturned pyramid 12 and affords the exit passage for fertilizer 5 by way of square or rectangular orifice 13 down onto conveyor belt 14 for ultimate removal, transit between the latter two being by way of twin distributor-trays 15 and 16 traversing in alternation longitudinally on wheels 17; the silo proper 1 - ₁2 comprises a baseplate 18, the entire assembly mounted onto a supporting framework 19 by way of a flange 20; 21 denotes guiderails on which tray 15 - 16 is caused to traverse; a crossmember 22 at the silo upper entry provides for the fixture of a gearmotor 23 driving the hollow shaft 24 of a screw 25 whose function is that of mixing the mass within the actual silo 1 - 12; holes 26 located in shaft 24 - of 1cm diameter for instance- serve for injection of liquid or mud waste and air and water into the overall mass according to requirement, the lower extremity of shaft 24 turning on mounting 27 suspeded from a radially-disposed element 28 located toward the lower end of silo 1 -12; 29 denotes a number of vertical tubes varying in length and open at bottom, exhibiting radially-set holes 30 -likewise of the order of _lcm diameter- for introducing liquid or mud waste and water and air necessary both to dilution and cooling of the waste compound which if allowed to ferment freely will cause harm to the worms, 31 denotes pipework for delivering waste, air and water in the desired proportions; inspection viewers in the silo wall are represented by 32; in Fig 3, a lead screw 33 coupled with female thread 34 affixed to tray 15-16 at an intermediate lateral location provides for movement of the latter, screw 33 being fitted between anchor points 35 and rotating thus when in receipt of drive from gearmotor 36 by way of geartrain 37. With reference to Fig 4, 38 represents a shed or similar structure housing batteries of rectangular-section silos 39 whose lower orifice is contrived by inward and downward inclination of two logitudinals of the single silo thus affording a tapered exit-profile, 40 denotes horizontally-disposed double-acting oil-hydraulic cylinders, each one actuating a row of distributor-trays 41 drawing off fertilizer from the sigle silos 39 lined up in batteries and dropping same onto corresponding conveyor belts 42, the latter feeding transverse exit conveyor 43; 44 denotes the bin , or barrow in which the end-product is taken away for use. With reference to Figs 5, 6 and 7, vertical tubes denoted by 45 exhibit radially-set holes 46 with -for instance- a dianeter-increase of 2 to 6mm from top to bottom, for the purpose of pumping air into the mass; 47 denotes open-bottom tubes of varying length furnished with radially-set holes 48 of approx, 1cm diameter through which liquid or mud waste and water are introduced; the hollow shaft 49 of a screw 50 exhibits holes 51 through which air and water may be passed, shaft 49 driven by a gearmotor 52 mounted to framework 53 and capable of driving a number of like shafts 49 given the appropriate transmission: 54 denotes a hopper-head divided into two sections 55 and 56 by partition 57, the one side of which in receipt of luqid or mud waste and perhaps water, the other receiving solid refuse; an inlet conduit 58 fed by pump 59 fills receptacle 55 with aforesaid liqids, the said pump being that distributing liquids to the tubes 47 of one or more batteries of silos; 60 denotes the conveyor belt bringing on solid refuse 61; receptacle 56 connects with the silo 39 interior by way of a chute 62 affording free fall of solids 61 the veinto ; 63 denotes jackets located at the sides of silos 39 for the purposes of pumping air into and withdrawing fumes from within the silo interior by way of holes 64 in the silo side-walls; viewers 66 provide for inspection of the interior; conduits 67 take air into and withdraw fumes from the chambers 68 created by jackets 63; fans are represented by 69 in Fig 6. With regard to the embodiment in Fig 1, function is as follows ; the empty silo 1 is filled with approximately 5cm-deep layers of earthworms 2 and faeces direct from rearing, alternated with approx, 2cm-deep layers of solid or mud waste, this being carried out by introduction through inspection flaps 32; the worms subsist thus on existing refuse and air contained therein for a period of some hours -maximum one whole day, heat and fumes given off during this time will not reach any level likely to give concern, hence no need for auxiliary media as yet; at the end of this initial stage a fan is switched on and air forced in through chamber 9 and grille 7 -8 giving oxygen to the worms, whilst fermentation fumes are extracted by the same route at the opposite side of the silo, by expulsion; air thus introduced assists in keeping temperature stable at the optimum 25°C, preventing the possibility of its rising beyond the limit of 30 - 35°C; with the exhaustion of such air as exists in the lower tapered portion of silo 1, the worms 2 rise to that part of the interior through which air passes thus vacating the silo lower region for collection of their excrement -i e manure, or organic fertilizer 5 which will be subsequently removed by periodic actuation of tray 15-16 and deposited thence onto conveyor 14; in the event of the end-product being only part-digested this same conveyor provides for re-transfer onto conveyor 4 and a second passage through the silo; with the gradual conversion into faeces by worms 2 of refuse initially introduced in layers, the level of the total bulk will drop wheter or not material has already been drawn off at the silo-orifice, whereupon liquid and/or mud waste may duty be introduced through the holes 30 of tubes 29 and, ultimately, through holes 26 in the hollow shaft 24 of screw 25, solids being dropped in from above 3 by conveyor 4; in the event of such air as entered through grilles 7 - 8 being insufficient for stabilizing temperature within predetermined limits, air ana water nay be sent in through said tubes 29 and 24; water is required for the additional function of diluting waste in the silo to the correct consistency, With the passage of a few months the worms will have multiplied considerably, hence the need for drawing off a certain proportion by working tray 15-16 with sufficient rapidity to disallow their working upward within lower region 12 or by way of inspection flaps 32. Worms 2 and manure 5 extracted thus may then be separated by revolving riddle, the worms themselves then despatched into a further silo, and so forth. The battery embodiment illustrated in Figs 4, 5, 6 and 7 functions in precisely the same fashion.

When carrying the invention into effect, the materials and dimensions suggested, as well as the design particulars, means for imparting alternating movement to trays whether of the single or battery embodiment, and means by which air, water, liquid, muddy and solid waste enter the silo may all differ from those described, whilst retaining techincal equivalence and by no means spraying from within bounds of protection afforded to the invention as claimed hereinafter; moreover the contrivance thus described may be utilized for direct conversion into earthworm-fertilizer of -for instance, fowl and livestock droppings -especially those produced by rabbits- this achieved by installation of a silo type-1 of the first embodiment approximately 50 to 150 cm high with or without screw 25 beneath the runs housing such animals; furthermore, silos of some considerable height or with a particularly large diameter may incorporate two or more screws as per single screw 25 -or indeed other multiple means for mixing in general, Lastly, hopper-head partitions 55 and 56 may assume multiple form as a series of sectors to a circle, each communicating direct with the silo interior the better to achieve even distribution threin of waste and water