When Marcellus stated, “there was something rotten in the state of Denmark” in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, he wasn’t besmirching the Danes.
But the Bard’s language and imagery are telling when thinking about humankind’s relationship with decay. There are many negative connotations to objects in disintegrating states, from bad smells to slimy molds to the squidgy flesh of zombies.
Scientists are looking at the degradation stage as something more beneficial than the simply the natural cycle of death and decay. There’s a more modern understanding that rotting has active potential – something called decomposition energy — and that this is energy that can be captured and put to good use. Let’s start with facts and then look at the practical implications of decomposition energy.
What Is Decomposition Energy?
Decomposition, as a word, is the state or process of rotting or decay, or breaking something into smaller parts. According to the Cambridge Dictionary it’s one compound breaking down into at least two (or more) simpler compounds. Decomposition energy is the total amount of energy a compound or matter can release through decomposition.
Does Decomposition Release Energy?
Decomposition does release energy. Decomposition energy can be released when a substance undergoes a chemical reaction and breaks down into other compounds. For example, manure collected on farms can be stored and allowed to rot and decay. This decomposition process produces methane, heat, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and other substances. The methane can be captured and burned to create electricity. These energy sources can be considered part of manure’s decomposition energy.
What Are the Main Types of Decomposition?
Decomposition usually requires an input of energy to occur – typically heat, light, or electrical energy.
Thermal decomposition: Heat applied to a compound causes it to break down. Suppose you heat copper carbonate, a bright mountain green-colored pigment often used by artists. In that case, it breaks down into copper oxide and carbon dioxide, thanks to thermal decomposition.
Photolytic decomposition: Also known as photodecomposition, photolytic decomposition occurs when light causes a compound to break down. Ozone breaking down into oxygen when exposed to light is an example.
Electrolytic decomposition: Electrical energy can also cause decomposition. The most famous example of this is water decomposition, which is when hydrogen and oxygen are broken down with an electric current. Separate substances of hydrogen and oxygen are the result of electrolysis. We can then use these new substances and their energy — hydrogen can be burned to create electricity or heat homes.
Why Does Decomposition Need Energy?
Decomposition requires energy to kickstart the breakdown process. That’s because the bonds that keep a compound together need an energy source called a reactant to overcome that bonding. Once the bonding has been broken through heat, electrical energy, or light, the original substance can decompose into new, simpler substances.
What Are Five Examples of Decomposition Reactions?
Have you ever forgotten to empty the food scraps bin? When you finally remember and deal with the rubbish, there’s often a bad smell, possibly some flies, and a little bit of mushy food. That’s decomposition working.
Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a common antiseptic used as a mouthwash or to prevent infections on minor cuts and burns. Apply light (photolytic decomposition), and this substance breaks down into water (H2O) and oxygen (O2). The oxygen forms those bubbles that help clean the wound.
Apply electrolysis to water (H2O), and you’re left with hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O2), an example of electrolytic decomposition.
Are you a fan of soda? When you open a bottle, it fizzes. That’s thanks to decomposition. Carbonic acid breaks down within the bottle or can to produce water and carbon dioxide, and the CO2 brings that bubbly fizz.
In industry, lithium oxide is widely used for batteries, in nuclear power plants, and in glass ceramics. We produce lithium oxide (Li2O) by burning lithium metal (Li) with oxygen (O2).
What’s the Most Common Form of Decomposition?
Thermal decomposition (also known as thermolysis) is the most common form of decomposition. It happens all around us, especially in the natural world.
What Happens During Decomposition in the Natural World?
The previous examples given were scientific displays of decomposition with exact results from processes.
Most people will be more familiar with the natural world’s decomposition techniques, which may appear a little more random at first glance. These include fungus on fallen trees and compost heaps in lawns to that little piece of chocolate that fell down the back of the sofa a few years ago.
Without decomposition, the world would overflow with organic matter, including corpses. In the natural world, everything that dies will decompose as a regular part of its ecosystem. Without decomposition, there would also be a lack of nutrients because the process returns minerals to the life cycle.
Decomposition of Organic Matter
There’s an army of plants, animals, and fungi that help natural decomposition. Called detritivores, these feed on dead or decaying organic matter. They include insects, larvae, fungi, slime molds, and bacteria. Earthworms, slugs, snails, and millipedes are other detritivores.
Fungi are the world’s greatest decomposers. Gardeners with compost heaps will be familiar with detritivores that create heat to kickstart thermal decomposition that eventually makes nutrient-rich mulch.
The same process occurs on a forest floor with fallen leaves — just more slowly. The dampness and fruits attract insects, some to lay larvae close to a food source and others, like wasps, to eat the other insects. Over time, decomposition occurs.
Fallen branches rot thanks to fungi and slimes. Many of these decomposers are often only visible when they fruit to reproduce, popping us as mushrooms or molds. All of these processes happen thanks to decomposition energy.
Decomposition of Animals
Animals decompose in different stages. Scavengers first strip away flesh, and flies lay eggs. Putrefaction sets in, and bacteria produce gases that inflate the corpse and give off bad smells.
After deflating and releasing its gasses, insects and larvae devour the body until skin and bone remain. Even these provide food sources to animals until, after several years, nothing remains of the body. The same would happen to a human corpse if left for long enough.
Is Bioenergy a Type of Decomposition Energy?
Bioenergy is a renewable energy source that comes from organic waste, also known as biomass.
Biomass sources like sludge and microalgae can produce valuable gases and fertilizers as byproducts of their decomposition process. Methane released from rotting manure piles and landfills can be collected and used in other processes like generating electricity.
But not all bioenergy sources rely on decomposition to create energy. For example, biomass wood sources like wood pellets or bark scraps are burned for heating or electricity generation and are not left to break down.
Do Maggots Provide Decomposition Energy?
Maggots have been used in medicine for centuries, helping to clean wounds, a technique still in use today.
Green-bottle fly larvae eat the dead or decaying tissue and bacteria surrounding an infected wound. Incredibly, they do not attack healthy tissue and concentrate only on that which is in decay.
The maggots don’t provide decomposition energy; they are the beneficiaries of the decomposition energy released by the infected wound. The decomposition energy comes from the flesh.
Decomposition Energy: How Long Do Substances Endure?
Experienced gardeners know it can take a few weeks to a few years to make compost. The key is the raising and maintenance of the organic matter’s temperature, thanks to actions of the detritivores within.
We can follow some decompositions with our eyes. For example, a fallen starling bird in the garden will eventually decompose, and windfall apples will rot underneath their parent tree. Some decomposition processes may take longer than others — huge tree trunks may take many years to break down completely.
How Long Does It Take for Plastic to Decompose?
Plastic is a nuisance on land and in the sea, dirtying cities, forests, and oceans alike. Many animals get caught in discarded plastics, often stopping them from feeding or hunting and resulting in their deaths. Despite campaigns and government initiatives, only 16% of plastics are currently recycled worldwide.
Plastic is a very visible slow decomposer. It can take between 20-600 years for plastic to decompose, depending on the durability and quality of the plastic. Exposure to sunlight also changes plastic’s decomposition life as light speeds up plastic’s photolytic decomposition.
Typical decomposition times for some plastics include:
- Coffee cups: 30 years
- Plastic straws: 200 years
- 6-pack plastic rings: 400 years
- Plastic water bottle: 450 years
- Coffee pod: 500 years
- Disposable diaper: 500 years
However, bacteria’s dislike of strong polyethylene terephthalate plastics, or PETs, means plastics could survive even longer. Scientists are working on plastic-loving bacteria to combat the problem so bacteria eat their way through the world’s plastic problem.
How Long Does It Take for Styrofoam to Decompose?
Styrofoam, a polystyrene form, is everywhere, from refrigerators to ovens, to home insulation and food containers. It’s also a common part of many disposable coffee cups. Some say Styrofoam will never decompose, while others say it takes up to 500 years to break down. Styrofoam is not easy to recycle, and many recycling plants won’t accept the material. Conversely, other polystyrene products, like yogurt containers, can often be recycled.
How Long Does It Take for Paper to Decompose?
Paper is a much lighter and easier material to decompose, taking around two to six weeks to break down. Cardboard is a tougher product and can take up to two months to decompose.
How Long Does It Take for Glass to Decompose?
Glass, first made around 5,000 BC, is one of the most widely accepted and simplest materials to recycle. Humankind has discovered glass artifacts from 3,500 BC in Eastern Mesopotamia, proving that glass stands the test of time. The best guesses are that it takes up to one million years for glass to decompose or, indeed, that it never actually decompose.
How Long Does It Take for Plastic Bags to Decompose?
It’s estimated that Americans use around 100 billion plastic bags annually, burning through 12 million barrels of oil during their manufacturing. In landfill conditions, it’s thought it takes around 1,000 years for a plastic bag to decompose. However, subject a plastic bag to light, and a supermarket bag may take about 20 years to decompose.
Decomposition Energy: The World’s (Often) Hidden Power
Wood rot, fungal infections, and bacteria were just a few of the many decomposing issues that were the scourge of early human civilizations.
Indeed, Egyptians mummified their corpses to prevent decay and Shakespeare’s “rotten” reference carries negative connotations to this day. Cheese lovers may well split into groups when confronted with a mold-covered slice — to eat or not to eat? That is the question.
Thankfully, our understanding of decomposition has come a long way, despite remaining fundamentally the same process since the Earth’s creation. Heat, light, or electricity kickstart decomposition, with a vast chain of animals, fungi, and insects the happy beneficiaries of the process.
Decomposition energy is a beneficial energy type. Modern chemistry means we can split compounds into simpler and practical substances. We can even create electricity from cow dung. Remember that the next time you turn your home’s lights on.
Brought to you by amigoenergy
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