Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939

www.elsevier.com/locate/wasman

Odour management and treatment technologies: An overview

M. Schlegelmilch *, J. Streese, R. Stegmann
Hamburg University of Technology, Department Institute of Waste Management, Harburger Schlossstrasse 36, D-21079 Hamburg, Germany

Accepted 15 July 2005

Available online 31 August 2005

Abstract

There is a large variety of options available for the effective treatment of odorous emissions. The most important physical, chem-
ical and biological treatment processes are shortly described and their favourable applications, as well as their limits, are highlighted.
But for a sustainable solution of an industrial odour problem, there is more involved than just the installation of a waste gas treat-
ment system. This article focuses on a general and systematic approach towards extensive odour management. First of all, an odour
assessment should be worked out where all actual and potential odour emission sources are recorded and characterised. A special
focus should be set on fugitive emissions, which may have an enormous impact on the overall odour problem. They need to be cap-
tured before they can be supplied to a treatment system. According to the composition and condition of the waste gases, an appro-
priate treatment system must be selected. For this purpose, test systems have been developed and are presented in this article.
Ó 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction avoid odour annoyance presently differ from country

Waste gas is one of the main emission pathways of
many industries and production processes. Airborne
emissions are highly mobile and, depending on their
composition, can cause environmental problems at the
local, regional or even global scale. Thus, treatment of
gaseous emissions is an important measure to protect
both public health and the environment. Consequently,
the legal requirements related to air emissions have be-
come stricter in many countries in recent years. Further-
more, air pollution can tarnish a companyÕs reputation
and decrease product acceptance. Complaints from the
public due to odorous emissions from municipal activi-
ties, e.g., composting plants, or waste gases of industrial
or agricultural origin are increasing significantly in
many countries. This leads to more emphasis on odour
assessment. However, regulations and guidelines to
*
Corresponding author. Tel.: +49 40 42878 2488; fax: +49 40 42878
2375.
E-mail address: schlegelmilch@tu-harburg.de (M. Schlegelmilch).
to country (Mahin, 2001; Sucker et al., 2001; Frechen,
2000).
As odour problems are very complex issues and find-
ing a suitable odour control technique is not less compli-
cated, a general odour management approach should be
made. This approach should always start with a thor-
ough odour assessment, where all emission sources are
recorded, characterised, and evaluated. Emissions that
cannot be avoided need to be captured before being
introduced into a treatment system. According to the
chemical composition and physical condition, a suitable
treatment system should be selected. In order to do so,
detailed knowledge is needed about the advantages
and disadvantages of the various technologies available
for off-gas treatment. Still, additional experimental data
may be necessary since required experiences for specific
applications might not be available. Such a systematic
procedure, followed by a continuous monitoring of the
performance of the implemented treatment process, is
a major step towards a sustainable solution to the odour
problem.

0956-053X/$ - see front matter Ó 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.wasman.2005.07.006
 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939 929

2. Odour assessment

Experiences have revealed that before a useful ap-

proach towards a successful odour abatement strategy
for a companyÕs emission problem can be made, the sit-
uation on-site has to be evaluated very closely. To effec-
tively tackle this problem, a systematic approach in the
form of an odour assessment should be carried out
(Schlegelmilch et al., 2004).
First of all, assessing the companyÕs level of odour re-
lease involves a complete detection of all actual and po-
tential odour emission sources. It is important to not
only consider obvious sources like air vents and stacks
but also sources of fugitive emissions. Especially the lat-
ter have often been neglected but may very well account
for a high portion of the odour problem. Often the po-
tential benefits of an effective waste gas treatment system
may be negated by fugitive emissions that have not been
taken into account in the odour management plan. Pos-
sible sources for fugitive odorous emissions may be open
delivery, tipping, and storage areas, open doors and
windows, as well as leakages in the piping system. In
addition, poorly designed or malfunctioning treatment
systems should be considered emission sources.
When identifying and recording the emission sources,
a companyÕs site plan may be very helpful to mark the
discovered sources for future reference. The site should
be systematically paced off by a group of people, includ-
Fig. 1. Odour assessment data sheet for recording the description and
ing at least one member of the local staff who is familiar
characterisation of odour sources and emissions.
with the site and the technical processes involved and an
expert in the field of odour assessment and abatement
strategies. Together they should record every relevant
odour emission source and present a detailed description with regard to its relevance for the overall odour
of the source. The companyÕs representative should pro- problem.
vide information about the origin of the several emis- The amount of organic carbon in the waste gas is an
sions to get a first idea of the possible composition important parameter, as it is a criterion for the suitabil-
and condition of the exhaust. A first evaluation of the ity of several waste gas treatment methods. While ther-
sourcesÕ contribution to the overall companyÕs odour mal treatment systems might be suggested for non-
problem may also be given. biodegradable compounds, biological systems may be
For the recording of the various emission sources, a the methods of choice for biodegradable substances.
systematic and uniform approach should be made. This The temperature mainly is a limiting factor for biologi-
allows a better comparability of the sources with regard cal systems. Usually, the temperature should not exceed
to their evaluation. It should be considered to develop a 40 °C. However, there are biological systems that are
data sheet that contains all the relevant data to describe able to deal with higher temperatures, like thermophilic
and characterise an odour emission source. An example bioscrubbers. High gas temperatures can also reduce the
for such a data sheet is given in Fig. 1. In the following, efficiencies of both adsorption and absorption due to the
a more detailed description is given according to the rel- increasing volatility of the odorous substances. The
evance of the mentioned parameters. moisture content also influences the selection of a treat-
One of the main criteria for the evaluation of an emis- ment system. While biofilters need water-saturated air
sion source regarding its contribution to the overall loads for a successful operation, very moist gas streams
odour problem is the odour concentration, with the may have a negative effect on selected adsorption sys-
odour load directly deriving from this parameter by tems. Furthermore, it has to be taken into account that
knowing the volumetric flow rate. The higher the odour from cooling of water saturated air streams, large quan-
load the higher the impact on the environment. Further- tities of condensate may arise. By analysing the chemical
more, the description of the odour quality may give cru- composition of a sample of waste gas, the most relevant
cial hints for a decent evaluation of the odour source odorous substances can be identified. Based on this
930 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939
knowledge, together with results from pre-tests, a suit-
able treatment method can be chosen.
Finally, a detailed description of the emissions
source, including photographs, is very helpful informa-
tion when discussing the odour abatement strategy.
3. Managing odorous emissions
Once all odorous emissions are detected and charac-
terised, they need to be captured before an adequate
treatment method can be applied to the waste gas. For
most of the emission sources this will be an easy task,
as there will mainly be air vents and sockets that have
to be dealt with. In these cases the waste gas streams
are already captured in pipe systems and can easily be
transported to a treatment system. Fugitive emissions
are an entirely different matter. A lot of effort has to
be put into the controlled collection of these emissions.
Especially at old factories which grew over several dec-
ades, it can be quite a challenge to detect and manage
all of these fugitive emissions. Often broken windows
need to be fixed, sources covered and captured, and ven-
tilation systems have to be installed.
When planning the capturing and collection of gas-
eous emissions it should be taken into account that most
waste gas treatment systems run more economically if
they are supplied with a high load of organic substances.
Furthermore, it is obvious that the higher the volumetric
flow rate of the exhaust gas, the larger the dimension of
the treatment system, and accordingly the more expen-
sive the facility will be. Consequently, capturing of emis-
sions by source should be practised by means of hoods,
by covering those processes which have a high emission
potential or by separating them from large process halls
to keep the quantities of contaminated air as low as pos-
sible. Collected waste gases should be treated according
to their chemical composition, their physical condition,
organic load, and volumetric flow rate. In some cases
it may be more efficient and even more economical to in-
stall various small treatment systems each designed for
one specific waste gas, instead of one big process that
is fed with collected emissions from the entire site.
Knowing about the advantages and limits of the sev-
eral treatment systems, the relevant information on the
waste gas streams needed for the decision of which pro-
Table 1
Overview on odour treatment processes
Process
Adsorption
Absorption
Biological waste gas treatment
Waste gas incineration
Non-thermal oxidation processes
cess to choose should be provided by the results of the
odour assessment.
4. Selecting appropriate odour treatment technologies
Very high process efficiencies are required for the
treatment of odorous emissions as humans are sensi-
tive to very low concentrations of odorous substances.
The applicability of the different treatment processes
mainly depends on the composition and amount of
the waste gas. Additionally, temperature, moisture,
and particulate content have to be considered.
Furthermore, the specific local situation has to be
taken into account. Crucial parameters for the feasibil-
ity of a process design are demand and availability of
land area and the financial budget. Nearly any treat-
ment process can be designed large enough to meet
the required efficiencies. Thus, selection and design of
suitable treatment processes must aim at finding an
optimum where the required treatment efficiency is
achieved as cost-effectively as possible, using a technol-
ogy that is adapted to the specific conditions. Often, a
combination of different treatment methods is
advantageous.
Information in Table 1 lists some of the more com-
monly used odour treatment processes along with corre-
sponding design options.
Having this variety of treatment options available,
the main task is to know which system is best applicable
for a specific odorous emission. This section provides
basic information on the advantages and disadvantages
of selected waste gas treatment systems, as well as addi-
tional potentialities of how to fill the gap between this
information and the final abatement of an odour
problem.
4.1. Odour treatment technologies
4.1.1. Adsorption
Adsorption is the process whereby the molecules of
odorous compounds attach to solid surfaces. Commonly
used adsorbents include activated carbon, activated alu-
mina, silica gels and zeolites. The first three of these are
amorphous adsorbents with a non-uniform internal
structure. Zeolites, however are crystalline and have,
Options
Different adsorbents (activated carbon, activated alumina, silica gels, zeolites, etc.)
Physical absorption; chemical absorption
Bioscrubbers; biotrickling filters; biofilters
Thermal afterburners; catalytic incinerators; regenerative thermal oxidation (RTO)
Ozone, UV, non-thermal plasma
 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939
therefore, an internal structure of regularly spaced cav-
ities with interconnecting pores of definite size (Buoni-
core, 1992a). Recently, research has focussed on the
design of engineered, specific adsorbents (König and
Werner, 2005; Cartellieri et al., 2005).
In industrial applications, adsorbers are mostly de-
signed as fixed bed reactors, with the gas passing
through a stationary bed. Simultaneous adsorption
and desorption is required for continuous operation of
adsorbers. This may be achieved by parallel operation
of several adsorbers or by using an adsorber wheel
(Fischer, 2001). Regeneration of the adsorbent is usually
conducted by means of hot gas or steam. A disadvan-
tage of this technology is the relatively low heat capacity
of the regeneration gases, resulting in large regeneration
gas flows, which are re-diluting the desorbate (Cartellieri
et al., 2005).
Electrothermal regeneration is a variant of thermal
desorption where the energy input is decoupled from
the flushing gas flow, resulting in better process control
and higher desorbate concentrations (Bathen and
Schmidt-Traub, 1999). One method of electrothermal
regeneration frequently investigated in recent years is
microwave desorption. Although this method showed
promising results in some applications (Stegmann and
Hensel, 2004; Robers et al., 2004), it has to be taken into
account that hot spots and electric discharges between
the particles may occur. Thus, flammable adsorbents
may be subject to spontaneous ignition in the presence
of oxygen (Price and Schmidt, 1998).
Other possibilities of electrothermal regeneration in-
clude inductive desorption, where an electric current in
the adsorbent is induced by a magnetic field (Bathen
and Schmidt-Traub, 1999) and adsorption on activated
carbon mats, which are regenerated by directly conduct-
ing an electric current through the material (Müller and
Schottler, 2003). In both cases, the active principle is oh-
mic heating. Obviously, these technologies can only be
applied to electrically conducting adsorbents, like acti-
vated carbon. In full-scale applications, electrothermal
desorption is much less commonly used than thermal
regeneration.
Adsorption is commonly used as an enrichment step
prior to thermal gas treatment (Anguil, 1998). It can
also be combined with other technologies, like biofiltra-
tion. This combination may be especially suitable for
companies with varying exhaust air concentrations,
e.g., due to discontinuous production, because biofilters
tend to be less effective under transient conditions. In
these cases, the adsorbent can be loaded in times of high
raw gas concentrations and desorbed when the inlet con-
centrations are low, e.g., at night. That way, the biofilter
can be loaded with a relatively constant concentration
(Paul et al., 2001; Herzog and Thißen, 1997). High mois-
ture contents, however, often have a negative effect on
the adsorption process.
931
In the process design of the predominating fixed-bed
adsorber, the diameter of the adsorber and the depth of
the adsorbent bed are the two critical dimensions, as
they influence the superficial velocity and the pressure
drop of the adsorber. To avoid fluidised bed character-
istics due to high air velocities and uneconomical pres-
sure losses, for continuous operation a superficial
velocity between 0.1 and 0.5 m s 1 has been proven to
be practicable (VDI 3674, 1998).
4.1.2. Absorption
During absorption, off-gas compounds are dissolved
in a scrubbing liquid. Mass transfer is mainly con-
trolled by the solubility of the substances and the
gas–liquid interfacial surface (Buonicore, 1992b). The
solubility can be affected by selection of a suitable sol-
vent, as discussed by Freudenthal et al. (2005). Packed
columns are used most frequently to provide a large
interfacial surface. Other devices which are used in-
clude jet and venturi scrubbers, plate columns and
spray scrubbers (Fischer, 2001; Heining, 1998; Buoni-
core, 1992b).
Accumulation of the waste gas components in the
scrubbing liquid would result in a cease of mass transfer
after establishment of equilibrium according to HenryÕs
law. Thus, the scrubbing liquid must be exchanged or
regenerated (Fischer, 2004).
Regeneration of the scrubbing liquid can be con-
ducted by means of stripping with air or steam. As in
adsorption, the aim is to obtain a desorbate flow with
considerable higher concentration than the original ex-
haust air which can be treated more efficiently. Aqueous
scrubbing liquids can also be biologically regenerated
(bioscrubbers, see below).
In many applications, chemicals are added to the
scrubbing liquid which will react with the dissolved
waste gas compounds and thus add to the scrubbing li-
quid regeneration (chemical scrubbers). In these cases,
removal of reaction products must be ensured.
The use of oxidants is the most common application
in chemical scrubbing. Besides ozone (O3) and hydrogen
peroxide (H2O2), mainly sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl)
is used because it is both relatively inexpensive and easy
to handle. However, a drawback of hypochlorite is the
tendency to not only oxidise but also chlorinate the
compounds. Furthermore, some chlorine gas (Cl2) also
is formed. NaOCl will most easily chlorinate amines
and similar basic compounds, which therefore have to
be removed from the gas by a sulphuric acid scrubber
prior to the hypochlorite scrubber. The chlorine evolved
can be absorbed in a third scrubber operating with caus-
tic soda. This three-stage system can be very effective
from a chemical point of view (Valentin, 1993). How-
ever, considerable amounts of chemicals are required,
and reaction products must be removed and treated or
disposed of.
932 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939
For the removal of ammonia, particularly from pig-
geries, sulphuric acid scrubbers have been successfully
applied. The advantage of this process is the formation
of an ammonium sulphide solution, which can be sold
as a fertiliser. This process often is combined with a sub-
sequent biofilter to remove remaining odours (Hahne
and Vorlop, 2001; Sattler et al., 2000).
Acidic substances, like hydrogen sulphide (H2S) can
be treated with caustic scrubbers using diluted sodium
or potassium hydroxide. This way, organic sulphur
compounds can also be removed (Dammann et al.,
2001). However, salts or sludges are generated which
may cause considerable costs for disposal (Fischer,
2004).
4.1.3. Biological treatment systems
Biological waste gas treatment systems rely on the
activity of microorganisms, which are able to degrade
organic contaminants from the air stream (Bardtke,
1990). The microorganisms feed on odorous substances
and oxidise them, at best to CO2 and H2O or other
odourless products. Thus, biological systems sustainably
reduce odorous emissions and do not shift the problem
to other media like scrubbing liquids or adsorbents,
which remain as problematic residues. Furthermore, if
at all, few chemical agents have to be added and energy
costs are relatively low, as they are operated at atmo-
spheric pressure and ambient temperatures. Accord-
ingly, investment and operational costs for biological
waste gas treatment systems are comparably low (Ergas
and Cárdenas-Gonzáles, 2004; Devinny et al., 1999).
There are two biological systems commonly used for
the treatment of odorous emissions:
 Biofilters.
 Bioscrubbers/biotrickling filters.
These systems are described below.
4.1.3.1. Biofilters. Biofilters can be described as bio-
chemical fixed bed reactors where the waste gas is trea-
ted while passing a biofilter bed. Microorganisms settle
on its surface and form a biofilm in which the airborne
substances are absorbed. An important criterion for bio-
filter media is to provide optimum environments for the
microorganisms, thus an essential property is the ability
to store water. Additional criteria are a low pressure
drop to assure an even air distribution and a large spe-
cific surface for the mass transfer and the microorgan-
isms to settle on. Frequently used biofilter media are
compost, peat, root wood, bark, wood chips (normally
used as bulking agent) and different kinds of combina-
tions (VDI 3477, 2002).
In most of these cases, the biofilter material already
provides stable mixed cultures of microorganisms,
which mostly adapt to the condition and composition
of the waste gas. The adaptation phase may range from
several days to several weeks (Streese et al., 2005; VDI
3477, 2002). Inoculation of the biofilter with e.g., bioso-
lids or specialised microorganisms especially for inor-
ganic media can be considered to shorten the starting
phase (Kennes and Thalasso, 1998).
One of the key parameters of biofiltration is the mois-
ture content of the biofilter material. The optimal range
for biologically active organic media is between 40% and
60% (VDI 3477, 2002; Heining, 1998; Kennes and Tha-
lasso, 1998). To avoid drying of the filter media, the
waste gas should be saturated with water vapour. Usu-
ally the air is humidified using wet scrubbers or even
bioscrubbers. However, not only dry air streams can
cause drying of the biofilter material. If the passing
waste gas is heated within the filter due to a high micro-
bial activity, water will evaporate into the gaseous
phase, as the ability of air to hold water vapour rises
with an increase of its temperature. That is why even
if the waste gas initially is saturated with water, the bio-
filter media may still dry out. An additional irrigation
system for the filter may be installed to ensure the opti-
mal moisture content. Anyway, adding too much water
should be avoided as it results in clogging and conse-
quently in an increasing pressure drop, a limitation of
the mass transfer, and possibly in anaerobic zones
(Kennes and Thalasso, 1998). Biofilters may be designed
as open to the atmosphere or enclosed (VDI 3477, 2002).
Biofilter beds are up to 2 m deep.
In open biofilters the air passes through the bed in an
up-flow direction. A problem with open biofilters is the
direct exposure of the biofilter media to climatic condi-
tions which may influence its functionality. A hot and
dry climate may result in a drying of the filter media.
The opposite problems have been reported from places
with very humid climate. In this case, heavy rainfalls
forced the operator to cover the filter (Accortt et al.,
2001).
Enclosed biofilters are less affected by weather condi-
tions than open filters, and also offer a better moisture
distribution, as they can be operated under down-flow
conditions. In these cases the water from the saturated
air stream moisturises the first layers of the biofilter
material while excess water trickles down by gravity to
deeper levels. However, typically the waste gas is not
saturated with water, resulting in a drying of the media
right where the exhaust is distributed. Consequently,
additional sprinklers should be installed at the inlet of
the waste gas (Dammann and Stegmann, 1999; van Lith
et al., 1990).
Traditionally, biofilters were used to treat off-gases
from sewage treatment plants, composting facilities
and rendering plants, which mainly contain biological
intermediate degradation products (Schlegelmilch
et al., 2005; Sabo et al., 1994; Schröder, 1994; Eitner,
1990). In recent years, further applications have been
 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939
opened to this technology including in food and tobacco
producing and processing industries (Ottengraf, 1986;
Eitner, 1992; Kersting, 1992), as well as the treatment
of waste gases containing industrial solvents and other
volatile organic compounds (Fell, 2002; Herzog and
Thißen, 1997; Hübner, 1997).
Problematic substances regarding biofiltration are
sulphurous and nitrogenous organic or inorganic com-
pounds, as they cause acidification of the biofilter media
due to their oxidisation products, sulphuric and nitric
acid (Hartikainen et al., 1996; Fetzner and Roth,
1995). For these applications, a combination with other
treatment processes should be considered.
Applicable filter loads usually range between 40 and
150 m3 m 3 biofilter material per hour (Dammann and
Stegmann, 1999; Hahne and Vorlop, 1999; Paul and
Nisi, 1996) but also filter loads of up to 500 m3 m 3 h 1
are recorded (VDI 3477, 2002).
4.1.3.2. Bioscrubbers and biotrickling filters. In bioscrub-
bers and biotrickling filters, the microorganisms gener-
ally are suspended in a scrubbing liquid but may
additionally be immobilised on packing material. The
most important component of these devices is the
absorption column where the mass transfer between gas-
eous and aqueous phase takes place, and thus the air-
borne substances are made available to the
microorganisms. Usually packing materials are installed
to enhance the contact surface of both phases. In most
applications the gaseous and the aqueous phases are dis-
tributed in counter flow to each other. However, if no
packing materials are installed, cross-flow systems often
are used.
Once the odorous substances are dissolved in the
scrubbing liquid, if degradable they are removed by
the microorganisms. The degradation process may take
place in the liquid, usually water, or in the biofilm that
grows on the packing materials. These internals not only
enhance the surface for the mass transfer but also pro-
vide an additional surface for the microorganisms to set-
tle. During the adaptation phase the microorganisms
start to grow and form a biofilm which has a large effect
on the degradation efficiency of the scrubber. Attention
has to be paid to the fact that clogging of the scrubber
might be a problem. To avoid clogging, the packed
bed should have large pores and should be cleaned
frequently.
The scrubbing liquid is subsequently drawn off and
continuously cycled. An activation tank may be imple-
mented into this cycle to allow further regeneration time
(VDI 3478, 1996). The degree of regeneration can be
influenced by the size of the activation tank and conse-
quently the retention time of the scrubbing liquid. It
may be necessary to install an additional aeration sys-
tem to provide a sufficient amount of oxygen (Schippert,
1994; Gust et al., 1979). Furthermore, nutrients may be
933
added to the scrubbing liquid to provide lacking ele-
ments like phosphorous, nitrogen, potassium, etc., for
the microorganisms. The superficial air velocity in a
bioscrubber should be in the range of 0.5–2.5 m s 1.
Packed towers operate at liquid irrigation rates of about
20–60 m3 m 2 h 1 of packing surface.
4.1.3.3. Bioscrubber/biofilter combination. This biological
system combines the advantages of both technologies.
The bioscrubber acts as a humidifier and degrades a
high portion of the odour load. It also shows a buffering
effect (Schlegelmilch et al., 2005), which prevents high
concentrations of odorous substances from entering
the biofilter, which otherwise might lead to a rise in tem-
perature in the biofilter material due to increasing degra-
dation processes.
4.1.4. Thermal waste gas treatment
Thermal treatment can be basically applied to any
exhaust air. However, since the concentration of VOCs
is often low, the addition of natural gas or a pre-
concentration, e.g., by adsorption, is usually required.
As a general rule, the lower limit for autothermal com-
bustion is a concentration of organic compounds of
1 g m 3.
For thermal treatment, catalytic and non-catalytic
techniques are applied. Catalytic processes can be oper-
ated at lower temperatures, resulting in considerably
lower energy demand. On the other hand, the costs for
the catalyst itself have to be taken into account. In addi-
tion, for non-catalytic processes, energy costs can be sig-
nificantly reduced by using advanced systems with heat
recovery (recuperative thermal oxidisers, regenerative
thermal oxidisers).
Thermal waste gas treatment has gained in impor-
tance due to more stringent exhaust air requirements
in recent years. For example, the German ordinance
on mechanical–biological pre-treatment of waste (30.
BImSchV, 2001) sets a limit of 20 mg m 3 of organic
carbon in the exhaust air, which can hardly be achieved
by biofilters. Furthermore, thermal waste gas treatment
may be considered on sites where a combustion facility
is operated anyway, e.g., for steam generation. How-
ever, corrosion and deposits on the combustion unit
may occur depending on the composition of the waste
gas.
Drawbacks of thermal waste gas treatment are the
high operating costs in the case of natural gas addition
and the formation of secondary emissions like nitrous
and sulphur oxides.
4.1.5. Non-thermal oxidation technologies
Besides thermal oxidation, several ‘‘cold’’ oxidation
techniques for the treatment of odorous exhaust air, like
UV treatment or non-thermal plasma, have been inves-
tigated in the last few years.
934 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939
UV treatment is successfully used for sterilisation of
drinking water or treatment of persistent wastewater
components. The technology is based on the UV in-
duced formation of highly reactive radicals and ions
which can oxidise organic molecules. Repeated efforts
were conducted to apply the positive experience from
water and wastewater treatment to waste gas treatment.
However, significant efficiencies were only measured
when high performance UV radiators were used, result-
ing in a very high energy demand not considered suit-
able for treatment of odorous waste gas (Fischer,
2001, 2004).
The non-thermal plasma technology uses strong
alternating electrical currents or microwave radiation
to induce highly activated molecules. Like with UV
radiation, reactive radicals and ions are subsequently
formed and react with odorous compounds. The ‘‘ion-
ised air’’ can be generated in an additional air flow that
is merged with the main waste gas flow, or directly in
the main flow. Both non-thermal plasma and UV radi-
ation result in the formation of excess ozone, which
has to be removed by a subsequent catalyst (Fischer,
2001).
In investigations at several plants using non-thermal
plasma technology, Fischer (2004) measured efficiencies
between 0% and nearly 100%. The results were strongly
depending on the composition of the waste gas and pro-
cess technology.
The results of applying a non-thermal ionisation sys-
tem show that a removal of the identified main odour
causers (limonene, a-pinene and dimethyl disulfide) in
the waste gas of the biological waste treatment is possi-
ble under optimal process configurations (Steinberg
et al., 2004).
At higher concentrations, the required electrical
power increases strongly, implying an application of this
technology in low concentration range <100 mgC m 3.
These findings correspond to results obtained with a
microwave reactor, where high efficiencies for the treat-
ment of a gas containing 10% ethanol were only ob-
tained at an electrical power corresponding to
14.5 kWh m 3 (I et al., 2004).
4.2. Odour treatment test systems
Since the relevant information for the design of a
suitable treatment system will not be provided for all
applications by general descriptions in handbooks or
even by detailed literature studies regarding compara-
ble odour problems, individual investigations in order
to find a suitable treatment method should be carried
out. Accordingly, a static and a dynamic mobile test
system have been developed at the Department of
Waste Management at Hamburg University of Tech-
nology to help in the selection of promising treatment
systems.
The static system consists of a plastic bag as used in
olfactometry (Bockreis and Steinberg, 2005) filled with
treatment media like adsorbents, scrubbing liquids, bio-
filter material, etc. and applied with a sample of the
odour emission (Fig. 2). After a certain storage time,
the treatment efficiency of the considered medium can
be analysed using olfactometry and chemical analysis
(Kleeberg et al., 2005). The results from olfactometry
give the overall odour removal rate whereas the chemi-
cal analyses reveal which odorous substances are best re-
moved by a certain medium. The results of these
investigations will not be suitable to predict the effi-
ciency of a full-scale plant but can be used to select
the most promising treatment option of a variety of
tested methods in a certain application.
The static test system is very easy to handle and gives
important information on the applicability of various
treatment methods, e.g., biological systems, but it can-
not predict the dynamic performance of continuous pro-
cesses. Therefore a dynamic test system is developed
with various treatment processes being tested in parallel
with a continuous distribution of the investigated waste
gas (Fig. 3).
According to the results from a test system, a prom-
ising treatment method might be chosen and applied to
a larger scale. A test plant should be set up on-site and
prove the efficiency of the method considered. These
pre-investigations are strongly advised in order to avoid
high investments on technologies that in the end turn
out to be either inefficient and/or uneconomical. Still,
a combination of treatment systems may be installed,
like those shown in Fig. 4.
Fig. 2. Static odour treatment test system with biofilter material as test
medium.
 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939 935

treated air
P

T1 T2 T3 T4

F1 F2 F3 F4

RP1 RP2 RP3 RP4

raw gas

T1-T4: test units

P: air pump
RP1-RP4: recirculation pumps
F1-F4: flowmeters

Fig. 3. Flow diagram of dynamic odour treatment test system.

Fig. 4 shows a combination of a bioscrubber, a biofil- investigate the treatment efficiency of the single devices
ter, and an adsorption stage. It was set up to treat odor- regarding specific odorous compounds from the waste
ous gas evaporating from the recirculation tanks of a fat gas (Fig. 5). Chemical analyses were carried out using
refinery process. This bench-scale test plant was used to solid-phase microextraction (SPME) and GC-MS/olfac-

Fig. 4. Flow diagram and photo of bench-scale waste gas treatment test plant.
936 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939
Fig. 5. Fate of odorous substances during the treatment of waste gas from recirculation tanks of a fat refinery process.
tometry (Kleeberg et al., 2005) and were confirmed by
Ranau et al. (2005). Both papers present more detailed
information on experimental results and analytical
methods.
The results provide specific information regarding the
treatment method that is best applied to remove a sub-
stance or group of substances. While in this phase of
the project these test systems are used to gather data
on odorous substances and adequate treatment systems,
in a later phase these data should be used to design a
waste gas treatment system adjusted to a specific odour
emission problem. But still, for final decisions, treatment
tests with the selected method should prove the applica-
bility and provide the required experimental data for the
dimensioning of a full-scale waste gas treatment plant.
4.3. Odour specific data base
To allow best possible access to the available knowl-
edge about the efficiency of waste gas treatment systems
regarding odour reduction, a data base will be set up by
the Department of Waste Management at Hamburg
University of Technology. The purpose of this data base
is to provide problem and solution oriented information
on odorous emissions of diverse industries and facilities.
Recorded information will include e.g., chemical com-
positions of emissions from specific industries, key com-
pounds and odour substance specific values, such as the
odour threshold, and also promising treatment technol-
ogies for the several substances.
Input material for the data base is continuously gath-
ered from scientific publications. Additional data should
derive from the analytical results of the investigations
with the newly developed test systems. Because of their
mobility, they can easily be applied to various kinds of
emissions and valuable information regarding the appli-
cability of various treatment systems to specific odorous
substances can be obtained.
The data base should be used as a tool, implemented
in the odour abatement strategy and give answers to
the question of which treatment technology is the best
suitable one for a specific odorous emission or
substance.
5. Conclusions
Odours are a complex mixture of up to several hun-
dred single odorous compounds that vary widely be-
tween diverse industries and facilities. Consequently,
odour problems require a systematic approach towards
a sustainable solution. Thus, a strategic odour manage-
ment plan has been developed, which is displayed in
Fig. 6. First of all, basic information on waste gas treat-
ment systems and general experiences should be gath-
ered from the literature, e.g., odour management
handbooks. The following, most important step is to
thoroughly assess the local situation. According to the
emission sources considered and the composition and
condition of collected waste gas streams, an abatement
strategy should be developed. Once the odour specific
data base is set up, it will provide helpful information
for this purpose. Additional required data can be ob-
tained by individual pre-investigations using suitable
test systems. Results should provide sufficient data for
the design and dimensioning of a full-scale treatment
process and, additionally, input data for the data base.
This continuously growing pool of knowledge about
 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939
Fig. 6. Odour abatement strategy for sustainable odour management.
odour abatement strategies and treatment technologies
should be used as a tool to effectively and economically
solve odour problems in industry or various other
facilities.
References
30. BImSchV, 2001. Verordnung über Anlagen zur biologischen
Behandlung von Abfällen. – 30. BImSchV [30th Federal Ordinance
on Ambient Air Protection: Ordinance on plants for biological
treatment of wastes; in German]. BGBl. I, 305.
Accortt, J., Krause, R., Rynk, R., 2001. Air handling holds key to
odor management. BioCycle 10, 54–59.
Anguil, G.H., 1998. Thermal oxidation. In: Rafson, H.J. (Ed.), Odor
and VOC Control Handbook. McGraw-Hill, New York, USA, pp.
8.31–8.65.
Bardtke, D., 1990. Mikrobiologische Voraussetzungen für die biolog-
ische Abluftreinigung [Microbiological requirements for biological
waste gas treatment; in German]. In: Fischer, K., Bardtke, D.,
Eitner, D., Homans, J., Janson, O., Kohler, H., Sabo, F., Schirz, S.
(Eds.), Biologische Abluftreinigung [Biological waste gas treat-
ment]. Expert Verlag, Ehningen, pp. 1–12.
Bathen, D., Schmidt-Traub, H., 1999. Elektrothermische Regeneration
von Adsorbern - Ein Überblick über den Stand von Forschung und
Entwicklung [Electrothermal regeneration of adsorbers – an over-
wiew on the state of research and development; in German]. Chemie
Ingenieur Technik 71 (12), 1359–1363.
Bockreis, A., Steinberg, I., 2005. Measurement of odour with focus on
sampling techniques. Waste Management 25 (9), 1–5.
937
Buonicore, A.J., 1992a. Adsorption. In: Buonicore, A.J., Davis, W.T.
(Eds.), Air Pollution Engineering Manual. Van Nostrand Rein-
hold, New York, USA, pp. 31–52.
Buonicore, A.J., 1992b. Absorption. In: Buonicore, A.J., Davis, W.T.
(Eds.), Air Pollution Engineering Manual. Van Nostrand Rein-
hold, New York, USA, pp. 15–31.
Cartellieri, A., Thiesen, P.H., Niemeyer, B., 2005. Development of a
basic procedure to design sorption processes. Waste Management
25 (9), 127–135.
Dammann, B., Stegmann, R., 1999. Dimensioning of bioscrubber/
biofilter-combinations for odour treatment at compost facilities. In:
Bidlingmaier, W., de Bertolde, M., Papadimitriou, E.K. (Eds.),
Organic Recovery & Biological Treatment. Proceedings, vol. II.
Rhombos Verlag, Berlin, Germany, pp. 645–651.
Dammann, B., Heining, K., Koellner, S., Stegmann, S., 2001.
Geruchsbeseitigung aus der Abluft eines Hartgummi verarbeiten-
den Betriebes – ein Verfahrensvergleich [Removal of odours from the
waste gas of a plant processing hard rubber; in German]. In:
Stegmann, R., Doedens, H., Hensel, A. (Eds.), Abluft 2001
Hamburger Berichte17. Verlag Abfall Aktuell, Stuttgart, Germany,
pp. 205–216.
Devinny, J.S., Deshusses, M.A., Webster, T.S., 1999. Biofiltration for
air pollution control. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA.
Eitner, D., 1990. Biofilter in der Praxis [Biofilters in practice; in
German]. In: Fischer, K., Bardtke, D., Eitner, D., Homans, J.,
Janson, O., Kohler, H., Sabo, F., Schirz, S. (Eds.), Biologische
Abluftreinigung [Biological waste gas treatment]. Expert Verlag,
Ehningen, Germany, pp. 55–73.
Eitner, D., 1992. Emissionsminderung in Ölmühlen durch Biofilter –
Erfahrungsbericht [Minimisation of emissions from oil mills by
biofilters – field report; in German]. In: Dragt, A.J., van Ham, J.
(Eds.), Biotechniques for Air Pollution Abatement and Odour
938 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939
Control Policies. Studies in Environmental Science, vol. 51.
Elsevier, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, pp. 197–205.
Ergas, S.J., Cárdenas-Gonzáles, B., 2004. Biofiltration: past, present
and future directions. BioCycle 6, 35–39.
Fell, J., 2002. Biologische Abluftreinigung zur Entfernung von
Lösemitteln [Biological waste gas treatment for the removal of
solvents; in German]. Wasser Luft und Boden 3, 42–44.
Fetzner, S., Roth, M., 1995. Biologische Abluftreinigung im Biofilter:
das Konzept des begrünten Flächenfilters [Biological waste gas
treatment in biofilters the concept of vegetated biofilters; in German].
Die Fleischmehlindustrie 1, 2–6.
Fischer, K., 2001. Nichtbiologische Verfahren zur Geruchselimination
[Non-biological processes for odour elimination; in German]. In:
Stegmann, R., Doedens, H., Hensel, A. (Eds.), Abluft 2001.
Hamburger Berichte, vol. 17. Verlag Abfall Aktuell, Stuttgart,
Germany, pp. 193–204.
Fischer, K., 2004. Methoden zur Geruchsminderung [Methods of odour
reduction; in German]. In: Geruch. Messung – Wirkung – Minde-
rung. Proceedings 71. Darmstädter Seminar Abfalltechnik. Schrif-
tenreihe WAR (157), Darmstadt, Germany, pp. 65–76.
Frechen, F.B., 2000. Odour measurement and odour policy; in
German. Water Science & Technology 41, 14–24.
Freudenthal, K., Otterpohl, R., Behrendt, J., 2005. Absorption of
odorous substances using selective gas–liquid separation processes.
Waste Management 25 (9), 117–126.
Gust, M., Sproenberg, F., Schippert, E., 1979. Grundlagen der
biologischen Abluftreinigung Teil IV: Abgasreinigung durch
Mikroorganismen mit Hilfe von Biowäschern [Fundamentals of
biological waste gas treatment. Part 4 Microbial waste gas treatment
by means of bioscrubbers; in German]. Staub - Reinhaltung der Luft
39 (9), 308–314.
Hahne, J., Vorlop, K.-D., 1999. Spurengasemissionen in der Land-
wirtschaft [Trace gas emissions in agriculture; in German]. Ents-
orgungspraxis Nr. 1S, 32–36.
Hahne, J., Vorlop, K.-D., 2001. Treatment of waste gas from piggeries
with nitrogen recovery. Landbauforschung Völkenrode 51 (3), 121–
130.
Hartikainen, T., Ruuskanen, J., Vanhatalo, M., Martikainen, P.J.,
1996. Removal of ammonia from air by a peat biofilter. Environ-
mental Technology 17, 45–53.
Heining, K., 1998. Biofilter und Biowäscher [Biofilters and bioscrub-
bers; in German]. In: Stegmann, R. (Ed.), Hamburger Berichte, vol.
14. Economica Verlag, Bonn, Germany.
Herzog, H., Thißen, N., 1997. Biologische Abluftreinigung in der
chemischen Industrie am Beispiel der Abluftreinigung bei der
Lackherstellung – Betriebserfahrungen und Ausblick [Biological
waste gas treatment in chemical industry on the example of waste gas
treatment in varnish production; in German]. In: Prins, W.L., van
Ham, J. (Eds.), Biological Waste Gas Cleaning, Proceedings of an
International Symposium, Maastricht, The Netherlands, pp. 83–
90.
Hübner, R., 1997. Biologische Abluftbehandlung in Industrie und
Gewerbe [Biological waste gas treatment in industrial applications;
in German]. Wasser, Luft und Boden 41 (5), 50–53.
I, Y.-P., Liu, Y.-C., Han, K.-Y., She, T.-C., 2004. Construction of a
low-pressure microwave plasma reactor and its application in the
treatment of volatile organic compounds. Environmental Science
and Technology 38 (13), 3785–3791.
Kennes, C., Thalasso, F., 1998. Waste gas biotreatment technology.
Journal of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology 72, 303–319.
Kersting, U., 1992. Behandlung großvolumiger Abluftströme durch
Biofilter, vorgestellt am Beispiel der Tabakindustrie [Biofilter
treatment of high flow rates on the example of tobacco industry; in
German]. In: Dragt, A.J., van Ham, J. (Eds.), Biotechniques for
Air Pollution Abatement and Odour Control Policies. Studies in
Environmental Science, vol. 51. Elsevier, Amsterdam, The Neth-
erlands, pp. 155–160.
Kleeberg, K.K., Liu, Y., Jans, M., Schlegelmilch, M., Streese, J.,
Stegmann, R., 2005. Development of a simple and sensitive method
for the characterisation of odorous waste gas emissions by means
of solid-phase microextraction (SPME) and GC-MS/olfactometry.
Waste Management 25 (9), 14–21.
König, W.A., Werner, F., 2005. Cyclodextrins as selective adsorbents.
Waste Management 25, 9.
Mahin, T.D., 2001. Comparison of different approaches used to
regulate odours around the world. Water Science & Technology 44,
87–102.
Müller, D., Schottler, M., 2003. Adsorber für geringe Lösemittelbe-
ladung. Intelligente Abluftreinigung mit Strom [Adsorbers for low
solvent loads Smart waste gas treatment with electricity; in German].
Verfahrenstechnik 37 (9), 30–31.
Ottengraf, S.P.P., 1986. Exhaust gas purification. In: Rehm, H.J., und
Reed, G. (Eds.), Biotechnology, vol. 8. VCH Verlagsgesellschaft,
Weinheim, pp. 425–452.
Paul, H., Nisi, D., 1996. Biofilteranlage in einer Gießerei – 3 Jahre
Betriebserfahrung [Biofiltration plant in a foundry – three years of
experience; in German]. In: Reinhaltung der Luft, Kommission
(Ed.), VDI-Bericht 1241: Fortschritte bei der thermischen, katal-
ytischen und biologischen Abgasreinigung. VDI Verlag, Düssel-
dorf, pp. 493–510.
Paul, J., Harasek, M., Friedl, A., Mairitsch, K., 2001. Modellierung
eines Hybridprozesses Adsorption/Biofiltration [Modelling of a
hybrid adsorption/biofiltration process; in German]. Chemie Ingeni-
eur Technik 73 (4), 384–389.
Price, D.W., Schmidt, P.S., 1998. VOC recovery through microwave
regeneration of adsorbents: process design studies. Journal of the
Air & Waste Management Association 48, S1135–S1145.
Ranau, R., Kleeberg, K.K., Schlegelmilch, M., Streese, J., Stegmann,
R., Steinhart, H., 2005. Analytical determination of the suitability
of different processes for the treatment of odorous waste gas. Waste
Management 25 (9), 908–916.
Robers, A., Thiesen, P.H., Niemeyer, B., 2004. Innovative Adsorp-
tionstrennverfahren zur Geruchsminimierung [Novel adsorption
processes for odour minimisation; in German]. In: Stegmann, R.
(Ed.), Erfassung und Minimierung von Gerüchen. Hamburger
Berichte, vol. 23. Verlag Abfall aktuell, Stuttgart. S., pp. 239–
254.
Sabo, F., Mössinger, M., Schneider, T., 1994. Optimierung bestehen-
der biologischer Abluftreinigungsanlagen bei Tierkörperbeseiti-
gungsanlagen [Optimisation of existing waste gas treatment systems
at animal rendering plants; in German]. Die Fleischmehlindustrie 46
(6), 109–113.
Sattler, D., Sattler, J., Schneider, R., 2000. Luft, die sich gewaschen hat
Kombinierte chemisch-biologische Abluftreinigung [Washed air.
Combined chemical–biological waste gas treatment; in German].
Verfahrenstechnik 34 (6), 14–15.
Schippert, E., 1994. Biowäschertechnologie [Bioscrubber technology; in
German]. VDI-Bericht 1104: Biologische Abgasreinigung. VDI-
Verlag, Düsseldorf, pp. 39–56.
Schlegelmilch, M., Kleeberg, K., Streese, J., Stegmann, R., 2004.
Geruchsmanagementkonzept zur Verminderung von Emissionen
[Odour management concept for reduction of emissions; in German].
Wasser, Luft und Boden 5, 40–43.
Schlegelmilch, M., Biedermann, W., Streese, J., Stegmann, R., 2005.
Odour control at biowaste composting facilities. Waste Manage-
ment 25 (9), 59–69.
Schröder, F., 1994. Olfaktorisches Emissions- und Immissionsverhal-
ten von Biofiltern in Kompostwerken und TKB-Anlagen [Olfactory
emission- and immission behaviour of biofilters in composting and
animal rendering plants; in German]. VDI-Bericht 1104: Biologische
Abgasreinigung. VDI-Verlag, Düsseldorf, pp. 399–414.
Stegmann, R., Hensel, A., 2004. Schwerpunkt Bioabfallverwertung:
Biologische Abluftreinigung bei der Kompostierung [Focus bio-
waste treatment: biological waste gas treatment at composting
 M. Schlegelmilch et al. / Waste Management 25 (2005) 928–939
plants; in German]. In: Umwelt Bundesstiftung, Deutsche Deutsche
Bundesstiftung Umwelt, vol. 60. Erich Schmidt Verlag, Berlin.
Steinberg, I., Bockreis, A., Jager, J., 2004. Odour abatement using
biofilters and a complementary non-thermal oxidation step. In:
Kommission Reinhaltung der Luft im VDI und DIN (Ed.): VDI-
Berichte Nr. 1850 Environmental Odour Management. VDI-Verlag
GmbH, Düsseldorf (DE, in print).
Streese, J., Schlegelmilch, M., Heining, K., Stegmann, R., 2005. A
macrokinetic model for dimensioning of biofilters for VOC and
odour control treatment. Waste Management 25 (9), 107–116.
Sucker, K., Both, R., Winneke, G., 2001. Adverse effects of environ-
mental odours: reviewing studies on annoyance responses and
symptom reporting. Water Science & Technology 44, 43–51.
Valentin, F.H.H., 1993. Odour control – recent advantages and
practical experience. In: Institution of Chemical Engineers (Ed.):
939
Effluent Treatment and Waste Minimisation. ICHEME Sympo-
sium Series No. 132., Rugby, pp. 197–208.
van Lith, C., David, S.L., Marsh, R., 1990. Design criteria for
biofilters. Transactions of the Institution of Chemical Engineers
Part B 68, 127–132.
VDI 3477, 2002. Biologische Abgas-/Abluftreinigung. Biofilter [Bio-
logical waste gas treatment. Biofilters; in German]. VDI-Handbuch
Reinhaltung der Luft., vol. 6. Beuth Verlag, Berlin.
VDI 3478, 1996. Biologische Abgasreinigung. Biowäscher und Ries-
elbettreaktoren [Biological waste gas treatment. Bioscrubbers and
biotrickling filters; in German]. VDI-Handbuch Reinhaltung der
Luft., vol. 6. Beuth Verlag, Berlin.
VDI 3674, 1998. Waste gas cleaning by adsorption – Process and waste
gas cleaning. VDI-Handbuch Reinhaltung der Luft, vol. 6. Beuth
Verlag, Berlin.