Odour Scrubbers and its Uses

Scrubber systems are air pollution control devices used to remove some particular gases from industrial exhaust streams and traditionally, scrubbers were pollution control devices that used the liquid to wash unwanted pollutants from a gas stream. Recently, it is a system that injects a dry reagent into a dirty exhaust stream to wash out acid gas. This is the next level technology to keep a check on the environmental pollution.

Primary uses

• Scrubbers are used to control gaseous emissions, especially acid gases.
• By flue gas condensation scrubbers can be used for recovery from hot gases.
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Different types of scrubbing

1. Wet Scrubber

The odour scrubbers may remove or neutralize the exhaust gases of combustion that are considered harmful to the environment. A wet scrubber is used for cleaning fuel gas, various pollutants and dust particles, air and some other particular gases. Wet scrubbing works via contact of a particular matter or target compounds with the scrubbing solution. A solution may be of reagents or water particularly dust that specifically targets certain compounds. Wet scrubbers are also used for heat recovery by flue gas condensation from hot gases.

2. Dry scrubbing

Unlike wet odour scrubbers, a dry or semi-dry scrubbing system does not saturate the flue gas stream which is being treated with moisture rather dry scrubbers do not have a stack steam plume or wastewater handling or disposal requirement. A dry scrubbing system is used to remove acidic gases such as HCL and SO2 primary from the combustion source. This system is also used for the removal of corrosive and odorous gases from wastewater treatment plant operation.

Waste products of scrubber

One of the side effects of scrubbing is that the process is used to only remove the unwanted and waste substances from the exhaust gases by converting them into a solid paste, liquid solution, or powdered form which must be disposed of safely if cannot be reused. Due to the result of inadequate cleaning, there may rise problems like poorly maintained odour scrubbers have the potential to spread disease-causing bacteria.

Types of potential treatment that can be used to control airborne or wastewater treatment plants are-

• Biochemical treatment
• Treatment by physicochemical scrubbing or absorption
• Order control through absorption over activated carbon
• Thermal oxidation
• Photo catalysis using a catalyst based on the principle of oxidation
• Cold plasma

Infographics: GETTING TO KNOW ABOUT THE VARIOUS TYPES OF SCRUBBERS USED IN THE INDUSTRIES.

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Gases that are removed with the help of air odour scrubbers includes-

• HCL gas or hydrogen chloride gas
• Ammonia
• Nitrogen oxide
• Sulphur dioxide
• Phosgene
• Chlorine
• Hydrogen sulphide
• Amines
• Bromine
• Nitric acid
• Methanol
• Formaldehyde

Air scrubber applications include-

• Food processing
• Municipal and industrial wastewater treatment
• Rendering facilities
• Pulp paper mill
• Composting facilities
• Rubber products and textile finishing
• Oil and petrochemical industry, etc.

Industrial waste applications include-

• Etching processes
• Metal finishing
• Chemical processing
• Fertilizer production

Thus, odour scrubbers are used in many industrial processes to remove a wide variety of gases and by-products along with corrosive gases like hydrogen sulphide, HCL, chlorine, and Sulphur dioxide from combustion by utilities and industrial process plants.