Dr. Haughery Publishes Research Findings

Assistant Professor John R. Haughery, Ph.D., CSCE recently published collaborative research on the impacts of manure drying practices on electrical energy consumption in Iowa poultry houses (hen houses). Results of this study indicate that, “on a per thousand bird basis, overall energy usage was reported at 10.1 kWh per day, 308 kWh per month, and 3.7 MWh per year. Energy costs per thousand birds were US$0.81 per day, US$25 per month, and US$296 per year. Respondents from 16 facilities reported their facility did not have smart meters (i.e., monitoring voltage, current, power factor, and energy consumption), while 10 reported smart meter usage and 5 reported they were unsure. Managers were no more likely to be aware of facility peak demand or track peak demand regardless of whether the facility had a smart meter (aware: P=0.09; track: P=0.26).” (Haughery, et al. 2022).

With Iowa leading the US in egg production, the results of this research will inform future energy management practices at commercial poultry facilities. Furthermore, this research was conducted as part of a larger multi-year project title, Smart Peak Power Avoidance for Reducing Grid Demand in Poultry Facilities and supported by the Iowa Energy Centers’ grant program [grant number 310314]. This work is a product of the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station, Ames, Iowa. Project Number IOW05590 was sponsored by the Hatch Act and State of Iowa funds.

Click read more to view the article summary is below with the full article accessible at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.japr.2022.100269

Article Summary

As laying hen housing styles change throughout Iowa to meet legislative and consumer demands, drying of manure can be economically expensive and energy intensive. With about 50% of total electricity consumption and about 60% of annual electricity costs attributed to manure drying, this represents an opportunity for producers to decrease production costs while reducing electrical grid strain. To understand current practices and potential opportunities, survey data were collected from 34 Iowa egg producers in fall 2020, representing egg-laying (n=50), breeding (n=30), and rearing (n=20) facilities. Average (±SD) reported number of weekly manure removal events was 2.2 ±0.50 for all housing styles with 2.4 ±0.09 for cage-free aviaries and 2.2 ±0.58 for conventional cage. Reported daily manure blower operation was 14.2 ±11.0 h/d for all facilities, with cage-free aviaries operating blowers for 10.0 ±11.8 h/d while conventional cage houses operated blowers for 15.1 ±10.8 h/d. On a per thousand bird basis, reported overall energy usage was 10.1 kWh per day, 308 kWh per month, and 3.7 MWh per year. Energy costs per thousand birds were US$0.81 per day, US$25 per month, and US$296 per year. Respondents from 16 facilities reported their facility did not have smart meters (i.e., monitoring voltage, current, power factor, and energy consumption), while 10 reported smart meter usage and 5 reported they were unsure. Managers were no more likely to be aware of facility peak demand or track peak demand regardless of whether the facility had a smart meter (aware: P=0.09; track: P=0.26). Interestingly, all 21 respondents reported being aware of peak demand incentives; however, only 9 (43%) respondents indicated their facilities participate in these incentives. These results provide a characterization of manure drying practices and energy usage in Iowa egg production facilities. There are opportunities to impact the manure drying process through control strategies that optimize blower energy based on environmental conditions, target manure moisture content, and peak demand periods.

Full article: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.japr.2022.100269

– Contributed by Dr. John R. Haughery

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