Archives of Environmental Protection

Abstract

Biogas plants processing municipal waste are very important investments from the point of view of waste management and also the sustainable development of urban infrastructures. They may also have a potentially negative impact on the environment in the form of odour emission. Olfactometry is the main method for odour impact assessment. Field olfactometry allows for performing a wide range of tests, the results of which are practically instantaneous. The purpose of this work is to provide a tool for assessing the odour impacts of municipal management facilities, including biogas plants processing municipal waste and evaluating the correctness of processes carried out in these plants, namely the method of fi eld olfactometry. In order to compare obtained olfactometric results with the concentration of chemical compounds, chromatographic tests were also carried out using the Photovac Voyager portable chromatograph (hydrogen sulphide -H 2 S and dimethyl sulphide -(CH 3 ) 2 S. The results of the odour concentration tests are in line with the results of odorant concentration tests and indicate that c od is strongly related to the concentration of hydrogen sulphide. Thanks to this method, it is possible to fi nd a relationship between odour nuisance, technological processes used in the plant and the type of treated waste.