Reduction of Bioaerosols Emitted from a Swine Confinement Building by a Percolating Biofilter During a 10-Month Period

Abstract

The release of pathogens into the air from swine confinement buildings are mitigated through preventative measures, such as outgoing air filtration, to reduce the risk of spread to nearby barns and communities. The present study aims to characterize the effectiveness of a percolating biofilter developed by the Research and Development Institute for the Agri-environment (IRDA) to capture airborne contaminants, such as bacteria and viruses emitted from a swine finishing room. Over a 10-month period (summer, fall, and winter), air was sampled upwind and downwind of the biofilter using two wet walled cyclonic samplers. Culture-dependent and molecular biology analyses were used to track changes in microbial concentrations and populations both captured and emitted by the percolating biofilter. Results revealed a minor reduction (median reduction efficiency 14.4%) in culturable bacteria. There was a decrease in total bacteria (qPCR) (75.0%) and other qPCR targeted organisms: archaea (42.1%), coliphages (25.6%), Enterococcus (76.1%), and Escherichia coli (40.9%). The community analyses showed similar bacterial diversity in the air upwind and downwind of the biofilter although more Proteobacteria were present downwind of the unit, likely attributable to the Proteobacteria-rich nutritive solution. Evidence is provided for bioaerosols reduction by a percolating biofilter treating air from a swine fattening-finishing room.

How to Reduce the Emission of Microorganisms from a Biofilter Used to Treat Waste Gas from a Food Industry Plant

“…Enterococcus faecalis and Gram-negative bacteria constituted up to 100% of all microorganisms in the waste gas, while in the treated gas Streptomyces strains were the dominant ones, forming 66.9-97.5% of the total bacteria. Differences in bacterial diversity in the waste gas from a swine fattening-finishing room and gas treated by the percolating biofilter were also observed by Vyskocil et al [27]. Authors noted that more Proteobacteria were present in the waste gas.…”

“…The number of culturable bacteria and fungi in gas samples was determined using tryptone-soya agar (TSA) and rose bengal chloramphenicol agar (RBC) after 48 h and 6 days incubation at 26 • C, respectively. Studies [25][26][27] show that bioaerosol in treated gas after biofiltration mainly contains microorganisms inhabiting the biofilter bed. As testing microorganisms found in high concentrations in outlet treated gases was a priority in our research, we decided to use the incubation temperature that was relevant to the conditions in the biofilter bed.…”

“…Vyskocil et al [27] carried out an extensive research using both culture-dependent and molecular biology analyses to track changes in microbial concentrations and populations both captured and emitted by the percolating biofilter treating air from a swine fatteningfinishing room. Results showed a reduction by 14.4% of culturable bacteria.…”

Improving adsorption effect of modified carbon felt on microorganisms in pig houses

“…Today swine production has been industrialized all over the world, resulting in an increase in the use of confined buildings [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]. In swine confinement units, the high densities of animals can create airborne microorganism problems, which may directly impact the well-being of the animals [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ].…”