Biofiltration Odour Control System Installed At T.Z. Osborne Water Reclamation Facility In North Carolina

Bord na Móna Environmental Products (USA) announce that the first United States installation of its new generation MÓNASHELL® Biological odour control treatment system has been completed at the T.Z. Osborne Water Reclamation Facility in Greensboro, North Carolina.

“The MÓNASHELL system was installed at T.Z. Osborne in early March,” reported Bord na Mona Environmental Products U.S. Inc. President Shane Keaney, “and it is achieving the expected high performance results across the range of odour compounds in line with our experience on more than 500 Bord na Mona odour control systems installed throughout the world. We wanted to showcase the performance of our MÓNASHELL odour control unit in being able to achieve very high removal rates on both high H2S levels, up to 500 ppm on this sludge holding tank facility and across the full range of organic compound loadings. While biofilters are good at removing odour compounds at low H2S levels and biotrickling filters can treat high H2S levels, but are limited in removal of organic compounds, the MÓNASHELL is an enhanced biotrickling filter that combines the treatment capabilities of both systems.

According to Brendan Naples, Odour Product Manager at Bord na Mona, odour emitted from wastewater treatment processes is increasingly a concern as populations grow and housing encroaches upon once-remote treatment facilities. “Odour is more than unpleasant. It derives from sulfurous compounds that can raise acidity and cause corrosion. The MÓNASHELL Biofiltration System is a sustainable, low maintenance and low operating cost alternative to traditional carbon or chemical scrubbing. The reuse of waste shells as media maintains a neutral pH, allowing for highly effective biological treatment of odourous sulfur compounds in wastewater and industrial airstreams without the use of chemicals.”

Indeed, according to Naples, the system installed at the T.Z Osborne Water Reclamation Facility is treating 500 cfm of air containing very high concentrations of Organic Sulfides and H2S. “The MÓNASHELL system is eliminating in excess of 99% of H2S, up to 99% of organic sulphides and in excess of 96% reduction on odour analysis using both ASTM E679 & EN13725 standards and it is doing so without chemical or nutrient additives, which is both better for the environment and keeps the operating costs lower.”

The MÓNASHELL system is designed to deliver significant, environmentally responsible benefits for wastewater pumping stations, wastewater treatment works, sludge-handling, municipal solid waste and composting centers, as well as various industrial facilities requiring odour & VOC removal.

The waste airstream is treated biologically in the liquid phase through re-circulating water within the MÓNASHELL unit, allowing contact between selected micro-organisms and odourous compounds. The bacteria reside on the shell media, which contains high levels of CaCO3 and neutralizes acid byproducts of sulfide oxidation. The physical, structural and chemical properties of the media allow for smaller filters and higher efficiencies. The by-products of the system are harmless, clean and odour-free.