Abstract: An experiment of composting kitchen waste under static aerobic conditions using different additives was carried out to investigate effects of the additives on ammonia volatilization and nitrogen loss during the composting process. The experiment was designed to have 4 treatments, i.e. Treatment A₀, CK; Treatment A₁, addition of 30mL·kg^-1 high temperature nitrogen-conserving bacterial agent; Treatment A₂, addition of 1mol·kg^-1 chemical nitrogen-conserving agent; and Treatment A₃, addition of 30mL·kg^-1 high temperature nitrogen-conserving bacterial agent plus 1mol·kg^-1 chemical nitrogen-conserving agent. At the end of the composting, analyses show that Treatment A₀, A₁ and A₂ increased TN content in the compost by 8.4%, 38.4% and 43.1%, and organic nitrogen content by 9.9%, 64.3% and 68.8%, but decreased ammonia nitrogen content by 11.3%, 86.5% and 86.5%, votilization of ammonia nitrogen by 13.4%, 84.0% and 86.5%, and nitrogen loss by 17.5%, 61.5% and 67.2%,  respectively, as compared with that in CK. Obviously, the use of additives could reduce volatilization of ammonia nitrogen and loss of nitrogen nutrient from the compost in the process of composting. The effect of the chemical agent was better than that of the bacterial agent, when they were used separately. Of the three treatments, Treatment A₂, using the two agents together, is the best in the effect.

Key words: food waste, composting, addition agent, nitrogen turnover, nitrogen loss