Fire Science Research Journal (FSRJ)

Research Article

Safety Assessment of Recyclable Japanese Food Waste Using Thermal and Gas Analysis

Naoharu Murasawa^1,2

¹Faculty of Risk and Crisis Management, Chiba Institute of Science, 3 Shiomi-Cho, Choshi, Chiba 288-0025, Japan

²Fukushima Prefectural Center for Environmental Creation, 10-2 Fukasaku, Miharu-machi, Fukushima 963-7700, Japan

Submitted: November 13, 2019; Accepted: January 28, 2020

Abstract

The thriving Japanese soy-sauce-production and fishing industries produce soy sauce squeezing residue (SSSR) and fishmeal as recyclable operational by-products. SSSR and fishmeal have caused accidents through spontaneous ignition, which have been attributed to the heat generated through fermentation or oxidation; therefore, safety measures are urgently required to prevent such accidents during storage and transportation. In order to understand the conditions leading to spontaneous ignition and, as a consequence, recommend safety measures for its prevention, this study investigated the amounts of heat generated during the storage of SSSR and fishmeal through thermal analysis, and oxygen levels present by gas chromatography. Our results indicate that in a well-sealed facility with sufficient oxygen, fermentation can lead to temperature increases that promote fatty acid ester oxidation and, in turn, fire.

Keywords

Japanese food waste; Safety measure; Fermentation and oxidation; Spontaneous ignition; Thermal analysis.

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