Mitigation of Livestock Odors Using Black Light and a New Titanium Dioxide-Based Catalyst: Proof-of-Concept

Concentrated livestock feeding operations have become a source of odorous gas emissions that impact air quality. Comprehensive and practical technologies are needed for a sustainable mitigation of the emissions. In this study, we advance the concept of using a catalyst for barn walls and ceilings for odor mitigation. Two catalysts, a new TiO2-based catalyst, PureTi Clean, and a conventional Evonik (formerly Degussa, Evonik Industries, Essen, Germany) P25 (average particle size 25 nm) catalyst, were studied for use in reducing simulated odorous volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions on a laboratory scale. The UV source was black light. Dimethyl disulfide (DMDS), diethyl disulfide (DEDS), dimethyl trisulfide (DMTS), butyric acid, p-cresol, and guaiacol were selected as model odorants. The effects of the environmental parameters, the presence of swine dust covering the catalyst, the catalyst type and layer density, and the treatment time were tested. The performance of the PureTi catalyst at 10 µg/cm2 was comparable to that of P25 at 250 µg/cm2. The odorant reduction ranged from 100.0% ± 0.0% to 40.4% ± 24.8% at a treatment time of 200 s, simulating wintertime barn ventilation. At a treatment time of 40 s (simulating summertime barn ventilation), the reductions were lower (from 27.4% ± 8.3% to 62.2% ± 7.5%). The swine dust layer on the catalyst surface blocked 15.06% ± 5.30% of UV365 and did not have a significant impact (p \u3e 0.23) on the catalyst performance. Significant effects of relative humidity and temperature were observed

Evaluation of Volatile Metabolites Emitted In-Vivo from Cold-Hardy Grapes during Ripening Using SPME and GC-MS: A Proof-of-Concept

In this research, we propose a novel concept for a non-destructive evaluation of volatiles emitted from ripening grapes using solid-phase microextraction (SPME). This concept is novel to both the traditional vinifera grapes and the cold-hardy cultivars. Our sample models are cold-hardy varieties in the upper Midwest for which many of the basic multiyear grape flavor and wine style data is needed. Non-destructive sampling included a use of polyvinyl fluoride (PVF) chambers temporarily enclosing and concentrating volatiles emitted by a whole cluster of grapes on a vine and a modified 2 mL glass vial for a vacuum-assisted sampling of volatiles from a single grape berry. We used SPME for either sampling in the field or headspace of crushed grapes in the lab and followed with analyses on gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). We have shown that it is feasible to detect volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted in-vivo from single grape berries (39 compounds) and whole clusters (44 compounds). Over 110 VOCs were released to headspace from crushed berries. Spatial (vineyard location) and temporal variations in VOC profiles were observed for all four cultivars. However, these changes were not consistent by growing season, by location, within cultivars, or by ripening stage when analyzed by multivariate analyses such as principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analyses (HCA). Research into aroma compounds present in cold-hardy cultivars is essential to the continued growth of the wine industry in cold climates and diversification of agriculture in the upper Midwestern area of the U.S

Detection of Volatile Compounds Emitted from Nasal Secretions and Serum: Towards Non-Invasive Identification of Diseased Cattle Biomarkers

Non-invasive diagnostics and finding biomarkers of disease in humans have been a very active research area. Some of the analytical technologies used for finding biomarkers of human disease are finding their use in livestock. Non-invasive sample collection from diseased cattle using breath and headspace of fecal samples have been reported. In this work, we explore the use of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from bovine nasal secretions and serum for finding biomarkers for bovine respiratory disease (BRD). One hundred nasal swabs and 100 serum samples (n = 50 for both ‘sick’ and ‘healthy’) were collected at the time of treatment for suspected BRD. Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) was used to collect headspace samples that were analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). It was possible to separate sick cattle using non-invasive analyses of nasal swabs and also serum samples by analyzing and comparing volatiles emitted from each group of samples. Four volatile compounds were found to be statistically significantly different between ‘sick’ and ‘normal’ cattle nasal swabs samples. Five volatile compounds were found to be significantly different between ‘sick’ and ‘normal’ cattle serum samples, with phenol being the common marker. Future studies are warranted to improve the extraction efficiency targeting VOCs preliminarily identified in this study. These findings bring us closer to the long-term goal of real-time, animal-side detection and separation of sick cattle

Pilot-Scale Testing of Non-Activated Biochar for Swine Manure Treatment and Mitigation of Ammonia, Hydrogen Sulfide, Odorous Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), and Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Managing the environmental impacts associated with livestock production is a challenge for farmers, public and regulatory agencies. Sustainable solutions that take into account technical and socioeconomic factors are needed. For example, the comprehensive control of odors, ammonia (NH3), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from swine production is a critical need. Stored manure is a major source of gaseous emissions. Mitigation technologies based on bio-based products such as biochar are of interest due to the potential benefits of nutrient cycling. The objective of this study was to test non-activated (non-functionalized) biochar for the mitigation of gaseous emissions from stored manure. Specifically, this included testing the effects of: (1) time; and (2) dosage of biochar application to the swine manure surface on gaseous emissions from deep-pit storage. The biochar surface application was tested with three treatments (1.14, 2.28 and 4.57 kg·m−2 manure) over a month. Significant reductions in emissions were observed for NH3 (12.7–22.6% reduction as compared to the control). Concomitantly, significant increases in CH4emissions (22.1–24.5%) were measured. Changes to emissions of other target gases (including CO2, N2O, H2S, dimethyl disulfide/methanethiol, dimethyl trisulfide, n-butyric-, valeric-, and isovaleric acids, p-cresol, indole, and skatole) were not statistically significant. Biochar treatment could be a promising and comparably-priced option for reducing NH3emissions from stored swine manure