Print this pageOdour
Odour is rapidly becoming an important issue and a major cause of customer complaints.
There are many sources of odour in our industry, and one is directly caused by surge pressures.
Pump trip is one of the most common operations in the industry and each pump trip causes a low-pressure surge wave that spreads throughout the system.
All of the many standard double orifice air valves installed throughout the world open under low pressures and draw air into the pipeline. Considerable volumes of air are drawn into rising mains as the pumps stop and the low pressure surges pass through the main.
Pump start re-pressurises the rising main and thus expels the air and other collected gases through the air valves. For wastewater rising mains this poses a realistic risk of odour issues.
Our studies can identify which air valves pose odour risks and we can also derive strategies to minimise or prevent odour at these locations.
A surge study at bid or early design stage can minimise odour in this way. Some of our recent studies have also been successful at removing these problems in operating systems.
