Abstract: Effects of initial moisture content on energy release from fermentation of the mixture of cattle dung and corn stalks as medium in an aerobic composting experiment were investigated.Relationship between loss of organic matter and heat production in the process was strdied.The experiment was desigened to have 5 levels of treatments of initial water content,i.e.(1)41%,(2)50%,(3)55%,(4)65%,and (5)75%,and heat was measured with oxygen bomb calorimetry.Results show that the temperature in the media rose and reached above 55℃ on D3 in all the treatments except Treatment 5.During the first three days,organic matter degraded the most rapidly and heat lost the most.In all the treatments except Treatment 5,heat production was positively related to initial moisture content.Treatment 4 was the most effective to activate aerobic composting,the highest in loss of organic matter,and the most variable in total heat.Its loss of organic matter reached up to 29.18% and total heat production 2236 kJ·kg^-1.If the heat generated was all used to remove the moisture of the substance,the medium could be completely dried up.

Key words: cattle manure, cron stalk, aerobic composting, fermentation heat, initial moisture content