Livestock Facility Odor 'Over'?... Over 95% Removed Using Electron Beam Technology

Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute Develops Electron Beam-Based Livestock Odor Reduction Technology on the 28th

Researchers at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute are monitoring odors at livestock facilities.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] A solution has been found for the high-concentration odor problem from livestock facilities near residential areas that significantly lowers quality of life. A technology that removes more than 95% of livestock facility odors using electron beams has been developed.

The Advanced Radiation Research Institute of the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute announced on the 28th that it has developed an "electron beam-based livestock odor reduction technology" and transferred it to Taeseong Environmental Research Institute, a company specializing in odor diagnosis, analysis, and monitoring, under the condition of a lump-sum technology fee of 100 million KRW and a running royalty of 2% of sales.

This technology is an advanced method that decomposes odor-causing substances using electron beams. The odors generated from livestock facilities are complex odors composed of ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptan, and others. Compared to general household or industrial odors, they contain a variety of organic compounds and have high concentrations. Because of this, treatment is difficult and the development of related treatment technologies has been slow.

Until now, odor substances have been dissolved or neutralized using water or chemical agents. Depending on the type of odor substance, water, acidic, or alkaline solutions are used. However, in the case of complex odors, treatment efficiency decreases and there is a limitation in having to treat the remaining waste liquid after odor removal.

The technology developed by the research team features capturing the air inside the livestock barn without using solutions and irradiating it with high-energy electron beams to rapidly decompose odors. Using a variable-output electron accelerator linked with olfactory sensors, the type and concentration of odors on site are detected in real time, and the accelerator output is optimized accordingly.

Electrons accelerated close to the speed of light in the electron accelerator react with odor substances to directly destroy the molecular structure of the substances or generate radicals that can oxidatively decompose them, inducing secondary decomposition. Through this process, more than 95% of most odor substances can be decomposed.

Chief Researcher Kim said, "We plan to directly install the electron beam-based odor treatment system in livestock facilities to secure actual odor treatment efficiency data."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.