Electronic nose could spell the end of landfill pongs

Scientists at the University of Manchester have invented a device which remotely monitors bad odours and methane gases at waste landfill and water treatment sites.

The device, which works like an electronic nose, could be the solution many communities and waste management companies, who regularly encounter problems with bad odours and air pollution, are searching for.

Currently there is no other instrumentation sensitive enough to monitor low concentrations of odours and gases on these sites. Gases and odours are analysed manually using handheld detectors and by panels of volunteers asked to smell samples of air.

The device has four sensors which analyse the composition of gases in the air. Air is sucked into the device at regular intervals and the profiled. The chemical profile of the air is then sent in real-time via a built-in GPS modem to a remote computer. Based on the concentration of various chemicals, the system is able to determine whether the methane gases or odours have reached an unacceptable level. The air is then filtered before being expelled back into the atmosphere.

Developed in collaboration with the Silsoe Research Institute, the device has already been successfully tested at the Brookhurst Wood Waste Land Fill Site, near Gatwick Airport in England. Five of the devices have been positioned around the perimeter of the site since May, 2005.