Gas emission in the poultry production

Abstract

Among the greenhouse gases produced in broiler chicken production environments, ammonia stands out for being present in higher concentrations and for significantly affecting human and animal health. Thus, this review evaluates the various sources of ammonia generation in animal production facilities, the damages caused by ammonia emissions in broiler chicken production facilities, and the accompanying economic losses. The main source of ammonia in broiler production is the nitrogen ingested in the diet, which is broken down into uric acid and, eventually, into ammonia that is volatilized from the bed to the environment. High ammonia concentrations in such facilities can affect productivity and result in economic losses. The effects on the environment are eutrophication of water bodies and ground water contamination. Ammonia emission control in poultry production facilities is therefore inevitable to avoid economic losses, prevent environmental damage, and increase feed efficiency.

Soybean vs. Pea Bean in the Diet of Medium-Growing Broiler Chickens Raised under Semi-Intensive Conditions of Inner Mediterranean Areas: Growth Performance and Environmental Impact

“…Agriculture activities, such as soil and manure management, sewage treatment, chemical industrial processes, and fossil fuel combustion, are the main sources of N 2 O [ 41 ]. In the poultry sector, the production of N 2 O is primarily associated with the high nutrient-feed requirements, but it is also linked to the emissions from arable lands and fertilizers production as well as it being produced by nitrification and denitrification processes [ 42 , 43 ]. The different gas emissions from SOY and PEA diets could be attributed to cultivation area, cultivation technique, as well as transportation and processing of raw materials.…”

Monitoring of ammonia concentrations from coir-husk litter of Brazilian poultry house using diode laser photoacoustic spectroscopy

“…Particularly in broiler farming, where confinement is practiced, the primary source of NH is the microbial decomposition of uric acid present in animal feces. The stepwise of the uric acid microbial breakdown in excreta is described in details by (de Sousa et al, 2017 ). Moreover, temperature, relative humidity, litter moisture and pH may also affect the way NH is emitted from the bedding material.…”

Potential for Ammonia Generation and Emission in Broiler Production Facilities in Brazil

“…In this respect, many studies have repeatedly demonstrated that, among the environmental impacts, air quality is one of the main factors to be guaranteed by the animal production [16][17][18][19][20][21]. However, the presence of atmospheric pollutants generated in animal production facilities, such as: ammonia (NH 3 ), particulate matter (PM), hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S), nitrous oxide (N 2 O), methane (CH 4 ), carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can compromise air quality [4,[22][23][24]. Ammonia in poultry facilities is mainly produced from the decomposition of uric acid present in animal manure [7,25].…”

“…In addition, ammonia stands out among the pollutants present in the facilities because it is present in higher concentrations in aviaries compared to other pollutants [28][29][30][31][32]. And also because it generates economic and financial losses in production, as it favors susceptibility to diseases in animals and workers [4,23,[32][33][34][35]. High levels of ammonia (above 25 ppm) in facilities affect animal productivity due to damage caused to body weight gain, feed conversion, welfare, carcass quality and even the immune system of chickens.…”