TITLE:
Assessment of NH3 Reduction and N2O Production during Treatment of Exhausted Air from Fattening Pigs Building by a Commercial Scrubber
AUTHORS:
Laurence Loyon, Philippe Dupard, Patricia Saint-Cast, Fabrice Guiziou
KEYWORDS:
Wet Scrubber, Ammonia, Nitrous Oxide, Piggery, Air Treatment
JOURNAL NAME:
Agricultural Sciences,
Vol.7 No.10,
October
26,
2016
ABSTRACT: The use of air scrubbers to reduce ammonia (NH3) emissions from buildings on pig farms is one of the most promising techniques in the GÖteborg protocol and other European regulations including the Industrial Emission Directive. In France, some air scrubbers are currently used on pig farms, mainly to reduce odours from livestock buildings. However, recent research revealed the production of N2O resulting from the treatment of air from pig buildings. In this context, a two-month study was conducted on a pig farm with 750 places for fattening pigs to check the abatement of NH3 emissions and to assess the possible production of N2O during treatment of exhausted air from buildings housing fattening pigs by a air scrubber. Concentrations of NH3 and N2O in the inlet and outlet air of the scrubber were continuously monitored using an Innova 1412 infrared analyzer. With the scrubber operating parameters (airflow, design, size), our results confirmed the production of N2O in the order of 5% of NH3-N reduced. N2O was produced by biological nitrification and/or denitrification inside the air scrubber. Statistical analysis (Pearson’s test) showed that the production of N2O was strongly influenced by the rate of airflow and the outside temperature. The abatement of NH3 emissions from the building was only 33%, i.e. much lower than the 70% - 90% usually cited in the literature.