Controlling hydrogen sulfide emissions from swine operations

Posted in: Air Filtration, Environment, Pork Insight Articles by admin on May 13, 2014 | No Comments

High concentrations of H₂S gas are a human and animal health hazard, and can increase the rate of corrosion in barn facilities. Metabolic inhibitors can decrease H₂S concentration, but they have not yet been tested in an open system, like a barn. This study isolated manure bacteria capable of metabolizing H₂S, and then conducted semi-pilot and room-scale evaluation. Two compounds, molybdate and nitrate, were found to reduce H₂S concentration. Nitrate is short acting, but molybdate can act for up to 6 months. Applying both 24-48 hours before activities that agitate manure is recommended. The study found application was financially feasible – with costs under 1% of total costs for a growth cycle.

Checklist for Swine Barns with Air Filtration Systems

Posted in: Air Filtration, Pork Insight Articles by admin on April 30, 2014 | No Comments

A checklist  for an engineering and biosecurity audit in a barn with an air filtration system. The air filtration and ventilation checklist includes things to do for the pre-operational, implementation, and post-installation stages. The biosecurity checklist covers Controlled Access Zones, Restricted Access Zones, the decision chain of command, incoming and outgoing animals, semen, and visitor and employee procedures.

Centre de développement du porc du Québec inc. April 30, 2014 presentation.

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The power point presentation from Centre de développement du porc du Québec inc. on two topics. The first topic was Minimization of the Risk of Contamination in Canadian Swine Barns with Air Filtration Systems, and it addressed a study analyzing contamination in barns that have an air filtration study. The second topic was Innovative Biocontainment Concept with Air Filtration at the Exhaust Fans in a Quarantine Facility. The study investigated a new system of biocontainment technology within a quarantine barn. The system included an electrostatic particulate ionization system, a prefiltration system, and antimicrobial filters at inlets and outlets. The system was found to be effective at filtering dust and bacteria, reducing maintenance on filters, and would allow quarantine barns to be directly attached to the main barn.

Air Filtration Why Bother?

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The power point presentation from South West Ontario Veterinary Services on the spread of airborne diseases, presented by Dr. B. Jones (DVM). Dr. Jones focuses on the use of air filtration systems, and shows the effectiveness and profitability of using a system. As well, he shows the importance of community cooperation in a hog-dense area, and  how isolation filtration is effective.

Development of an Air Filtration System for Swine Transport Vehicles to Protect Against Airborne Diseases During Transport

Posted in: Air Filtration, Pork Insight Articles by admin on January 29, 2014 | No Comments

Transporting pigs through a pig dense area can result in a biosecurity risk, so designing an air filtration system for transport vehicles could prevent infection of transported stock. This project developed an air filtration prototype after conducting a literature review, survey on, and evaluation of current designs. While designing the trailer animal space and capacity, temperature, ventilation, current technology, and power needed were taken into consideration. The air filtration system will be composed of MERV filters and axial fans, and will not have air conditioning or an air diffuser. After installation into a trailer the effectiveness will be evaluated, and a feasibility analysis conducted.

Novel Biocontainment Concept for Quarantine Facilities

Posted in: Air Filtration, Pork Insight Articles by admin on October 29, 2013 | No Comments

The use of filters to prevent the spread of the PRRS virus is well supported, but current use of filters on exhaust fans is limited due to the high clogging rate from dust. The use of an ionization filter before an antimicrobial filter was tested to see the effect on the concentration of dust particles. The ionization filter system works by creating a negative charge on dust particles, so they attach to surrounding surfaces. Air then passes through MERV13 prefilters before exiting through antimicrobial filters. Additional antimicrobial filters in the attic prevent backdraft contamination. The ionization filter  was found to reduce dust particles by 64% and bacteria concentration by 83% before the antimicrobial filter. This system could allow quarantine and farrowing units to reside in the same building with minimal risk of PRRSv spread by exhaust air, and greatly reduce the maintenance required on exhaust filters.

Effectiveness of an Innovative Air Cleaning System for Reducing Ammonia, Dust and Odour Emissions from Swine Barns

Posted in: Air Filtration, Pork Insight Articles by admin on June 11, 2013 | No Comments

The abstract for a project installing three biotrickling air filtration systems into grower rooms to test the effect on ammonia, dust, and odor levels.

Innovative Biocontainment Concept With Air Filtration at the Exhaust Fans in a Quarantine Facility: Combination of Proven Technologies to Reduce Filter Clogging Rate

Posted in: Air Filtration, Pork Insight Articles by admin on April 23, 2013 | No Comments

Using an air filtration system has been shown to be effective in reducing the risk of PRRSv contamination, but high clogging rates make maintenance and cost impractical in most commercial barns. This study tested the effect of various prefilters at the exhaust outlet, and the effect of ionizing systems. The study took place in a 108 gilt quarantine barn, and spanned 25 days (except for one 35 day trial). The inlets were  equipped with a 15 layer Noveko antimicrobial filter. The outlets had either a StuffNix prefilter with an ionizing system, StuffNix without ionizing, MERV-13 prefilter with an ionizing system, or MERV-13 without ionizing. Following one of those options was a  Noveko prefilter, and then a 10 layer Noveko antimicrobial filter. An ionization system reduced particle concentration by 43-60%, total bacteria by 83%, and dust mass concentration by 64%. The StuffNix prefilter reduced dust mass concentration by 29-38%, quantity of particles by 3-39%, and total bacteria by 6-9%. The MERV-13 prefilter reduced dust mass concentration by 47-80%, quantity of particles by 81-96%, and total bacteria by 89-96%. With the StuffNix prefilter, the prefilter did not clog, but the antimicrobial filter did. The MERV-13 prefilters performed well in autumn conditions, as both the prefilter and the antimicrobial filters did not clog. The MERV-13 system with the ionizer filter a different quantity of air than without an ionizer, so cannot be compared. For this study, it was determined installing a filtration and ionizing system would provide a savings if the other option was to build a detached quarantine unit. Overall, the MERV-13 prefilter and antimicrobial filter system was the most effective at filtering out dust and bacteria, and remaining unclogged. However, additional studies in summer conditions, and to compare using an ionizer or not will need to be conducted.

The Impact of PRRS on the Cost of Pig Production

Posted in: Air Filtration, Pork Insight Articles by admin on August 30, 2012 | No Comments

One of the most prominent health issues in the pork industry is the porcine reproductive and repository syndrome virus (PRRSv). It causes extended days to market for growing pigs and reproductive problems in the breeding herd,such as increased aborted pregnancies and still born piglets. In a survey done by the National Animal Health Monitoring System it was revealed that 21% of hog operators had some form of the virus infecting their herd. This paper attempts to explain the costs of PRRSv for swine producers. Costs were explained for all different stages of production in a swine operation. The costs of PRRS in the breeding-farrowing phase was found to be $74.16 loss per litter. $45 of this cost was because a lot of pigs died early, while $29.16 was from reduced farrowing rate. The costs of PRRS in the nursey was $6.01 per head, this was mainly due to increased mortality, reduced feed conversion and reduced average daily gain. The costs in the grow finsih stage was found to be worth $7.67 per head on infected farms, because of increased mortality, poor feed conversion and reduced average daily gain. Using this data along with data released by the USDA on national hog production, researchers estimated that PRRS was costing the swine industry $66.7 million per year in the breeding-farrowing phase, $201.34 million per year in nursery pigs and $292.23 million per year in finishing pigs.

Range of HEPA Cleanroom Filters Launched

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This document contains several small articles describing new air filtration products released at the time. The articles are:

• High performance ceramic membranes for demanding applications.
• Portable particle counter.
• Centrifuge for pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries.
• Range of HEPA cleanroom filters launched.
• Horizontal vacuum filter for process filtration.
• An emulsion seoaration system with automatic cleaning.