Background
Merrell Bros., Inc. is serving municipalities, industries, and agricultural operations across the Midwest and beyond. As a leader in biosolids management, wastewater treatment solutions, and environmental services, they are committed to providing sustainable, cost-effective solutions that keep communities and businesses running efficiently.
The customer explained the issues they were having with odor pollution and showed our ozone technician possible injection points of ozone usage. After hearing their concerns and process, we were able to propose a solution to fit their needs. We will integrate a system that injects ozone to eliminate process odors.
How Does Ozone Remove Odors
Ozone is considered an unstable gas which means it cannot exist for a long time before nature forces the third oxygen atom to break free. This is how ozone is capable of eliminating odors! The single elemental oxygen atom breaks from the ozone molecule and then oxidizes the odor-creating bacteria. Once this process is complete, the ozone is no longer present and is now replaced by the oxygen molecules. Of course, this process is going to take more time to complete as the amount of ozone being produced increases.
One particularly great aspect of using ozone for odor removal is ozone’s ability to change the chemical compounds that are creating the foul smell. Because of this, ozone isn’t just covering up the odors you want to get rid of, it is actually getting rid of the smell at the source. This helps to ensure that odor will not continue to come back time after time.
Related Information on Odor Removal from Wastewater
Odor removal using ozone is used worldwide for many commercial and industrial applications. Ozone use for odor removal is most likely the most common use of ozone worldwide. Ozone is commonly used in homes and businesses to remove odors from smoke, pets, and mold. The same oxidation process that allows ozone to be so efficient in these applications can also be implemented in wastewater treatment and handling.
Odors are naturally generated from wastewater treatment processes, and handling processes. Ozone can be implemented in many of these processes to reduce or completely eliminate odors.
Wastewater lift stations can implement ozone in the head-space of the lift station by forcing air mixed with ozone into this headspace. When the water level in the pit of the liftstation increases and air is forced from the head-space this air will be treated with ozone and ensure all escaping air will be odor free.
Wastewater processes implementing aeration can implement ozone in the aeration process. As this air has low solubility into the water much of the ozone will escape into the head-space. The air escaping the process will not be free of odor.
There are many creative methods to implement ozone into wastewater treatment processes. As urban areas encroach on sewer plants, and additional sewer plants are constructed near urban development, odor is of increasing concern. Please call our application engineers for details on how ozone can be used to treat odor in your application.
On-Site Service Images – Wastewater Treatment
Images taken by Oxidation Technologies at the Merrell Bros Inc. Headquarters location in Kokomo, IN
