Description

Description of the N.O.S.E platform

When tackling industrial odour problems, the issue of uncertainty poses a very real challenge to the design engineer. Due to the subjective nature of malodour, even the most conservatively planned abatement schemes won’t guarantee zero complaints or an emission free of offensive odour.

Likewise, for end user customers, uncertainty is a critical issue that affects the business bottom line. Factory owners and managers need to have the confidence that a proposed odour control scheme will work before committing any capital expenditure.

To minimise the adverse consequences of design risk, Scandinavian Centriair AB have developed a useful tool – a mobile pilot plant – that enables odour abatement schemes to be tested rigorously before starting any full-scale build.

The Nuisance Odour Solution Evaluator (or the N.O.S.E. as it is called) allows the capabilities of a range of odour abatement techniques to be tested on ‘live’ industrial processes without interruption or down time. The pilot plant consists of a venturi scrubbing section, a packed tower scrubber and two ‘cold oxidation’ systems, both of which have pending European patents.

What’s so special about the N.O.S.E.?

Several pilot plants are being used in the field to assess industrial odour. However, most are single technology devices, such as biofilters or single column wet scrubbers. An advantage of using the N.O.S.E. is that it permits not just one but any combination of odour control methods to be tested simultaneously. With the aid of its flexible design, an engineer can optimise and fine tune treatment regimes, switching quickly from one configuration to another while comparing the results scientifically and subjectively in real time.

The N.O.S.E. is a powerful confidence builder when its capabilities are demonstrated, not only to customer end users, but also their third party interests, namely staff, local residents, the public via the press and PR agencies, and last but not least, the environmental regulators.

However, testing is only the beginning of a journey. Armed with valuable scientific data from a pilot trial, our process designers are able to assure factory owners that cost-effective and proven odour abatement schemes can be designed, built and delivered.