Odour measurement - factors affecting olfactometry panel performance

Abstract

To identify factors affecting olfactometry panel performance in the measurement of environmental odours, a data bank of odour threshold measurements including 923 individual panel tests on environmental odours and 145 tests on standards were analysed statistically. There is an evident decrease in olfactory sensitivity to environmental odours with age. The group threshold tends to be one step lower for a 25 year increase in average age of panel members for Type I odours (piggery, feedlot, landfill and mushroom composting) and for 36 years increase for Type II odours (sewage and industrial coke works). The threshold for N-butanol tends to be 1 step lower for an increase of 15 years in age. People who are over 40 years old exhibited a greater variation than younger people. Although there was a minor gender difference in the sensitivity to butanol standard, it was not statistically significant (mean natural logarithm butanol threshold was 3.65 for males and 3.84 for females). Similar minor differences were exhibited in Confidence Index (CI), 1.72 for females (std. dev. 0.73) and 1.81 for males (std. dev. 0.77). Using “guess and correct” as criterion to determine individual thresholds in the forced choice olfactometry, the mean natural logarithm of ppb butanol is 1.365 lower than that for “certain and correct”. The standard deviation for “guess” and “certain” criteria were 1.093 and 0.911 respectively. The “certainty” criterion gave a better repeatability than the “guess” criterion.

Round robin test for odour testing of migration waters

“…The individual results varied in a range up to 7 or 8 dilutions with a dilution ratio of 2, which corresponds to a ratio of 128e256 between the lowest to the highest odour threshold concentration. Bliss et al (1996) report similar variations up to 6 dilutions with a dilution ratio of 2 for 1-butanol (ratio 64 in threshold concentrations). Linschoten et al (2001) found for a smaller panel (27 panellists) ratios for the threshold concentration for 1-butanol of their panellists in the range of 10e50 (estimated from a graph).…”

Methods of Assessing Odour Emissions from Biogas Plants Processing Municipal Waste

“…Gas samples in indirect olfactometry are collected in bags, usually Tedlar Bags ® (Szyłak-Szydłowski, 2015) and sent to the laboratory equipped with a stationary dynamic olfactometer. Using this olfactometer, a gas sample is presented to a research team (Bliss et al, 1996; Schulz and van Harreveld, 1996; Sówka, 2011. The undoubted disadvantage of this method is the high risk of changes in the chemical composition of the mixture of the transported gas sample, which affects the result of odour concentration during the determination in the laboratory.…”

Comparison of air dilution sensory test and threshold odor number method for odor evaluation of wastewater and lake water

“…이러한 악취현황을 파악하기 위해서 이용하고 있는 악취물질 측정방법은 크게 많은 측정분석 장비에 의한 기기분석법, 사람의 감각기관을 이용하는 관능법, 악취 물질의 물리화학적 성질 등을 이용한 센서측정법 등이 있으며, 이 중 사람의 후각기관을 이용한 관능법이 오 래전부터 이용되어 왔다 (Dravnieks and Jarke, 1980;Turk et al, 1980;Gostelow et al, 2001;Park, 2003a;NIER, 2007;Kim et al, 2013). 특히 복합악취를 평가 하기 위한 공기희석관능법은 현장에서 시료를 채취하 *Corresponding author Tel : +82-42-280-2534 E-mail : envsys@dju.kr 여 인간이 냄새를 인지하지 못하는 수준인 역치농도까 지 시료를 순수한 공기로 희석시켜 희석배수를 평가하 는 것으로 현재 악취방지법에서는 배출구와 부지경계 지점에서의 악취규제에 이용되고 있다 (Park, 2003b;NIER, 2007 (Bliss et al, 1996;Kim 2004;Lee et al, 2014…”