Evaluation of a Biofilter Designed to Improve the Indoor Air Quality Inside a Livestock Barn

For the past decade, I have been researching new types of biofilters for treatment of livestock odours. Although I anticipate the fabrication of a prototype biofilter by April 2011, I do not expect the design team to have time to evaluate the functioning of the biofilter. It is my intention to recruit a student during the summer of 2011 to experimentally evaluate the design to ensure that the design flaw has been rectified. I already have the necessary instrumentation to experimentally evaluate the functioning of the biofilter. Furthermore, the design team has been instructed to consider the experimental evaluation in their design (i.e., they have been instructed to consider the placement of moisture sensors in the biofilter).

The purpose of this project, therefore, is to conduct an experiment to evaluate the functioning of the biofilter. Following collection of the data, the student will be expected to analyze the results and, time permitting, prepare a publication for submission to a refereed journal describing the biofilter and its evaluation. The CSBE/SCGAB Annual Conference is being hosted in Winnipeg in July 2011. The student would have opportunity to attend this Conference and present the results of this research and development project. The experimental evaluation will consist of data collection, data analysis, and preparation of a manuscript for presentation at the 2011 CSBE/SCGAB Annual Conference in Winnipeg (and ultimately for publication in a peer-reviewed journal such as Canadian Biosystems Engineering).

Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Daniel Mann

Student:

Deepesh Aggarwal

Partner:

Discipline:

Engineering - chemical / biological

Sector:

Agriculture

University:

University of Manitoba

Program: