Mitigation of Acute Hydrogen Sulfide and Ammonia Emissions from Swine Manure during Three-Hour Agitation Using Pelletized Biochar

Abstract

The risk of inhalation exposure to elevated concentrations of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and ammonia (NH3) during the agitation of stored swine manure is high. Once or twice a year, farmers agitate manure before pump-out and application to fields. Agitation of the swine manure causes the short-term releases of highly toxic levels of H2S and NH3. In our previous pilot-scale studies, the biochar powder showed significant mitigation of H2S and NH3 emissions when it was surficially applied to manure immediately before agitation. However, fine biochar powder application poses hazards by itself and may not be practical to apply on a farm scale, especially when livestock and workers are present. We hypothesized that applying pelletized biochar to manure surfaces is just as effective as applying powder to protect farmers and animals from excessive exposure to H2S and NH3. This work reports on the lab-scale proof-of-the-concept trials with biochar pellets on the lab scale. The objective was to compare the biochar pellets and biochar powder on their effectiveness of mitigation on H2S and NH3 gases during 3-h-long swine manure agitation. Three scenarios were compared in (n = 3) trials: (i) control, (ii) 12.5 mm thick surficial application to manure surface of biochar powder, and (iii) an equivalent (by mass) dose of pelletized biochar applied to the manure surface. The biochar powder was bound with 35% (wt) water into ~5 × 10 mm (dia × length) pellets. The biochar powder was significantly (p < 0.05) more effective than the biochar pellets. Still, pellets reduced total H2S and NH3 emissions by ~72% and ~68%, respectively (p = 0.001), compared with ~99% by powder (p = 0.001). The maximum H2S and NH3 concentrations were reduced from 48.1 ± 4.8 ppm and 1810 ± 850 ppm to 20.8 ± 2.95 ppm and 775 ± 182 ppm by pellets, and to 22.1 ± 16.9 ppm and 40.3 ± 57 ppm by powder, respectively. These reductions are equivalent to reducing the maximum concentrations of H2S and NH3 during the 3-h manure agitation by 57% and 57% (pellets) and 54% and 98% (powder), respectively. Treated manure properties hinted at improved nitrogen retention, yet they were not significant due to high variability. We recommend scaling up and trials on the farm-scale level using biochar pellets to assess the feasibility of application to large manure surfaces and techno-economic evaluation.

Application of Granular and Non-Granular Organic Fertilizers in Terms of Energy, Environmental and Economic Efficiency

“…Reference [43] states that the use of granular poultry manure reduces the risk of environmental pollution compared to non-granular fertilizers (manure) or mineral fertilizers. The properties of the treated manure made it possible to improve the nitrogen retention, and it is therefore advisable to increase farm-scale testing using pellets in order to assess the potential for large manure surfaces and the technoeconomic assessment [44]. The most common poultry manure management practices in Poland include the use of poultry manure on the soil (spreading unprocessed poultry manure on land, improvement of fertilizer and soil, various compositions and forms such as unprocessed poultry manure, granular forms, pellets and compost) through anaerobic digestion.…”

Hydrogen sulfide‐activatable fluorescence turn‐on azide‐containing naphthalimide derivative

“…Thus, the workers are often exposed to H 2 S in a variety of workplaces, such as manufacturing, oil and natural gas drilling, and animal farms 8,9 . The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) establishes an acceptable ceiling limit of 20 ppm and 50 ppm as a maximum peak for H 2 S in workplace air within 10 min 10,11 . Therefore, considering the biological and environmental roles of H 2 S and its effects on humans, the development of fluorescent turn‐on probes that selectively and quickly detect H 2 S in biological and environmental contexts is essential.…”

Intensive Animal Farming Operations – a Preliminary Analysis of a Number of Farm Animals, Ammonia Emission Values Variability and Methods of Reducing Odor Emissions and Assessing Health Impact Taking into Account Possible Solutions in Poland and Ukraine

“…The concentration of some specific and most common odor substances, such as hydrogen sulfide or ammonia can be compared with individual gas levels of airborne emission regulations. Ammonia and hydrogen sulfide are often more thoroughly investigated in previous studies as they can cause serious adverse health and environmental-related damage (Ruth 1986, Chen et al 2021.…”