Canada - Oil Field H2S Reduction Technology Under Evaluation for Swine Barn Application

Scientists at the University of Saskatchewan hope to harness technology currently being used to reduce the emission of hydrogen sulfide gas in the Alberta's oil field to reduce hydrogen sulfide emissions in swine barns. Hydrogen sulfide, a potentially deadly gas, is one of the byproducts of the decomposition of manure. In an effort to reduce the level of H2S emissions from the manure pits in swine barns the University of Saskatchewan, in partnership with the Prairie Swine Centre, is attempting to determine whether a biological approach that's been successful in dealing with hydrogen sulfide in oil reservoirs, can be used to reduce H2S emissions in livestock operations. Dr. Mehdi Nemati, an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering, says the concept relies on naturally occurring microorganisms that convert hydrogen sulfide into less harmful compounds. In an oil reservoir we have bacteria which produces sulfide and there are bacteria which could convert the sulfide to less harmful compounds like sulfur or sulfate. What you do by adding specific compounds like nitrate or nitrite you stimulate the activity of the second group of bacteria and, as a result of their activity, basically this sulfide in the oil is converted, as I said, to less harmful compounds. The first step which we need to basically assess or identify is whether we have indigenous or native bacteria in the manure which can oxidize or convert sulfide to elemental sulfur or sulfate. If that's possible we prefer not to introduce any foreign organisms to manure. Then the next step would be to apply this bacteria, or what we isolate in the lab, to manure and see how efficient it would be in the treatment of sulfide. Dr. Nemati estimates it will take about a year to determine whether or not the concept can be successfully applied to livestock production at which point, if successful, the project will advance to larger pilot scale experimentation.