The application of dynamic olfactometry in evaluating the efficiency of purifying odorous gases by biofiltration

Abstract

A widely used method for reducing odor emissions into the air at municipal waste plants is biofiltration. This method allows obtaining high gaseous pollutant removal efficiency at relatively low investment and operating costs. Evaluating the efficiency of a biofilter using dynamic olfactometry is a very useful tool because it allows determining the degree of total deodorization efficiency. Determining the concentrations of individual pollutants does not always give an overall assessment of the degree of olfactory pollution by the gases being emitted, and at the same may not be sufficient in the case of evaluating the efficiency of a deodorization installation. The paper presents the results of the evaluation of biofilter efficiency performed based on olfactometric determinations. The measurements were conducted for biofilter-treated gases emitted from various sources within four municipal waste processing plants. Obtained results indicated the biofiltration efficiency between 60.8 and 97.2% and showed that after the filter bed replacing (organic instead of mineral bed) deodorization efficiency significantly increased. An important aspect of the overall evaluation was the evaluation of odor hedonic quality, due to the frequently intense natural odor of the biofilter bed itself