Gaseous Waste

Treatment

Lecture 3
Major gaseous pollutants
• Odour

• Sulphur oxides- wet scrubbers

• Oxides of nitrogen (NO and NO2)-wet scrubber
• Carbon monoxide
• Hydrocarbons
Odour
• Odourant: compounds responsible for imparting an
odour
• Odour: is the perceived effect of the odourants as
detected and interpreted by the olfactory system. as a
single component or a mixture of odorants
irrespective of whether the smell is pleasant or not.
Sample collection

 Should be a representative of the original

gas
 Collected in plastic bags or steel canisters
which is not adsorbant of odour
 High moisture content of air can affect
odour measurement
Odour sampling and measurement
Odour Panel
• Selection of panel members-
• 6-10 people
• Members with near normal odour response
• Trained to react to odour intensity and not quality
• Odour intensity points - 0 to 4

• Hedonic scale – appreciation of smell (4 to -4) -4

very unpleasant.
Odour Measurement
• Threshold value is the only value that can be determined
from an odour of unknown constituency. This is the
concentration below which odour is not detectable by an
average person. ie. 1ou/m3

• Odour Units- Concentration of an odour in the air sample that

can be perceived by 50% of the observers expressed as
OU/m3.

• This is defined as the number of dilution necessary to bring

the sample to threshold level.
Concentration of pollutants

• 1ppm = 1 volume of gaseous pollutants

106 total volumes

Or 1ppm = 0.0001% by volume

Odour measurement
Odour
counteraction/masking
• To mask non toxic nauseating odour eg. sewage
treatment plant, storage tanks

• By injecting a chemical with stronger odour which

could destroy the odourous properties of both gases

• Counteractant usually sprayed as mist at the top of

the stack. Every odour require its own counteractant
and never desensitise the olfactory nerve
Methods of gaseous waste
treatment
• Dispersion with stacks

• Combustion process

• Adsorption

• Absorption and chemical reaction

• Condensation
1. Combustion -
• Incineration -Destruction of waste gas by combustion
process.

• Mainly used for the destruction of organic gases

(benzene, toluene, xylene etc etc )
Direct flame incineration
• Used when the waste gas is at or near their lower combustible limit when
mixed with air. That is the concentration of organic vapours is high
enough to provide sufficient heat of combustion to sustain the oxidation.

• Temperature required for oxidation to be completed- ~1000 oC

• >3000KJ/m3 (natural gas- 24,000KJ/m3)

• Also used if the waste gas itself is combustible- H2S, HCN, CO .

Thermal incineration
• used for a mixture of organic gas and air when the amount of
organic is very small- ie. Small heating value of 30-600KJ/m3

• Three T’s - Time of contact with flame

• Temperature in the chamber
• Turbulence of waste air

• Require 500-800 oC
Catalytic incineration
• -Used where the concentration of combustible materials and air are very
low.

• Commonly used catalysts are Platinum and Palladium dispersed on some

form of support like alumina

• Catalytic poisoning can happen with Si, Pb, Fe, As

• Temperature required -300-500 oC

• Fuel saving but higher investment cost

• Heat recovery
Adsorption
Principle: It is a molecular surface phenomenon where
molecules adhere to the surface of a solid.

• Adsorbents: activated charcol, silica gel, alumina and bauxite

• Carbon can be either discarded or regenerated and various solvents

separated by distillation

• Works efficiently on large surface to volume ratio

• Air stream should be free of Particulates before carbon adsorption as they

can clog the passages between carbon particles
Biofilter
• Microorganisms in the filter break down organic
components to CO2 and water

• Biofilter
• Compost , Peat, Bark, chipped wood

• Operating conditions
• Ammonia should not exceed 25mg/m3
• Air temperature should not exceed 35oC,
• Humidity near 100%
Biofilter
Biofilter

Applications
Food processing, livestock feed plants,
water treatment plants, poultry
and meat processing,
slaughter houses
Absorption

• Water soluble gaseous effluents-absorption

and/or neutralisation
• Equipment - packed or plate columns, spray
towers, venturi scrubbers
• Applications- removal of HCl, formaldehyde,
acetone, hydrogen flouride, ammonia, Hydrogen
sulphide
• Disadvantage: wastewater disposal
Absorption - examples
• Hydrogen chloride gas can be absorbed in water to form weak
hydrochloric acid or

• Neutralised with weak solution of sodium hydroxide or

calcium hydroxide to form sodium chloride or calcium
chloride

• Oxidation using potassium chloride or chlorine to remove

noxious odours.
• Permaganate under alkaline condition result in the formation
of manganese dioxide (colour change from purple to clear)
Chemical scrubber
• Applications
• Food processing, feed manufacture*, Water treatment
plants
• *Poultry and Meat processing,
• *Chemical industry, like emissions of organic sulphur
compounds, acrylates

• Large contact area between gas and liquid

• Sufficient residence time around 3 seconds
• Multistage design to absorb both acid and alkaline component
Condensation
• Is a pre treatment to remove organics. Suitable only if organic
components can be recovered in cases where waste gas has
substantial quantities of condensable materials such as water
or vapour

• Shell and tube condenser

• Tubular air cooled condenser
• Direct contact condenser
Woodman point wastewater treatment plant wet scrubber
Revision questions
• What are the different components of gaseous waste that need
to be treated before emission.

• Explain two methods of odour removal describing the

principle, operation and their application to odour treatment.
What is meant by odour unit and how is threshold level
determined?
• What is the significance of odour panel?
References

 Sampling and measurement of odours

(2003)-IWA scientific and Technical
Report No.17

 Stuetz and Frechen (2001). Odour in

wastewater Treatment- Measurement,
Modelling and Treatment