Odour Control Units for Biological and Chemical Scrubbing Applications
Wastewater plants, pump stations, rendering facilities, and food processing sites emit H₂S, VOCs, and mixed odorous compounds that breach community tolerances and regulatory limits at trace concentrations. Odour Control Units from Armatec neutralise contaminated airstreams using biological, chemical, and physical scrubbing technologies at source before they reach surrounding environments.
We offer Odour Control Units from Armatec that remove H₂S, VOCs and odours in wastewater plants, pump stations, rendering and food-processing sites. The range covers biological scrubbers, venturi scrubbers, vertical tower scrubbers, wet packed scrubbers, horizontal crossflow scrubbers, air washers, vortex separators, and damper assemblies for low to high-volume odorous airstream treatment.
At Dutco Tennant LLC, we source premium Odour Control Units, Dampers and Vortex Units from Armatec and supply them across municipal, industrial, and infrastructure projects throughout the UAE and GCC.
Why These Systems Are Specified First
- Biological scrubbers use live Thiobacillus bacteria to consume H₂S permanently, eliminating transfer to liquid waste streams or spent carbon beds that chemical alternatives generate
- Odour control units sewage applications require full FRP and thermoplastic construction, as H₂S combined with moisture and chemical dosing destroys metal-bodied equipment rapidly
- Variable throat damper control sustains constant pressure drop across wide airflow variations, maintaining treatment efficiency during wet weather surges and load fluctuations
- Fully packaged units with fans, pumps, instrumentation, and control panels reduce on-site installation scope and commissioning time against site-assembled configurations
- Independently verified removal efficiencies provide documented performance data for environmental authority approval and community complaint resolution
System Capabilities Worth Knowing
- Construction: FRP vessel bodies, CPVC internal pipework, and thermoplastic packing media provide full corrosion resistance across aggressive H₂S and chemical dosing environments
- Control Integration: pH monitoring, fan speed, chemical dosing, and damper actuation integrate into a single pre-wired panel with remote SCADA connectivity as standard
- Vortex Separation: Cyclonic separators remove entrained liquid droplets from treated airstreams, protecting downstream ductwork and fans from corrosive moisture carry-over
- Damper Operation: Motorised inlet and bypass dampers isolate individual units for maintenance without shutting down the connected extraction system
- Skid Mounting: Factory-tested pre-assembled skid packages ship ready for connection, reducing civil work to slab preparation and duct connections only
Types
Biological Scrubber
Biological scrubbers pass odorous air through a packed bed colonised by Thiobacillus bacteria that consume H₂S and sulphur compounds as a metabolic substrate, converting them to harmless sulphate and water without chemical reagents.
- pH monitoring only is required, with no continuous chemical consumption or carbon replacement, keeping operating costs low across high-concentration and variable H₂S duty
- Compact footprint occupies a fraction of the land area required by equivalent soil bed biofilter installations at space-constrained wastewater facilities
- Suited to wastewater treatment plants, pump stations, rendering plants, and pulp and paper facilities where continuous chemical scrubbing becomes operationally cost-prohibitive
Venturi Scrubber
Venturi scrubbers accelerate contaminated air through a constricted throat where high-velocity collision with injected scrubbing liquid atomises droplets that trap soluble gas molecules and particulates simultaneously.
- Variable throat damper maintains constant pressure drop across wide inlet flow rate variations, sustaining removal efficiency during operational load changes
- Tangential inlet ports keep vessel walls fully wetted, eliminating wet-dry boundary scaling that causes corrosion on standard spray tower inner surfaces
- Suited to high-particulate streams from rendering cookers and food processing exhausts where packed beds would blind rapidly from solid loading
Venturi Wet Scrubber with Packed Bed
A venturi wet scrubber combines a low-pressure venturi pre-scrub stage with a structured packing mass transfer column, delivering two-stage mechanical and chemical removal in a single compact vessel.
- First-stage venturi removes coarse particulate and high-concentration gas fractions; packed column polishes residual soluble gas compounds to outlet concentration targets
- Counter-current liquid and gas flow maximises contact time and mass transfer, achieving higher VOC and acid gas removal than single-stage venturi systems alone
- Venturi gas scrubber configuration handles mixed H₂S, ammonia, mercaptans, and VOCs within one treatment unit without separate downstream polishing stages
Vertical Tower Scrubber
A vertical tower scrubber uses counter-current packed column flow where contaminated air rises through structured packing while recirculating scrubbing solution flows downward across the packing surface.
- Sodium hydroxide or hypochlorite dosing chemically oxidises H₂S and dissolves acid gases, achieving strong removal efficiencies at moderate capital cost across municipal wastewater applications
- Wet packed scrubbers in vertical configuration handle high gas flow volumes at low pressure drop, suiting headworks ventilation, sludge processing, and primary treatment extraction duties
- Multi-height access doors allow column inspection and re-packing without taking the scrubber vessel out of service, reducing maintenance downtime at continuously operated facilities
Horizontal Crossflow Scrubber
A horizontal crossflow scrubber passes contaminated air horizontally through a vertical curtain of structured packing irrigated by downward-flowing scrubbing liquid, treating gas and eliminating mist in a low-profile vessel.
- Low installation height suits indoor plant rooms and equipment enclosures where vertical tower configurations require structural modifications to accommodate
- Voc scrubbers in horizontal crossflow configuration treat mixed organic and inorganic streams from food processing, pharmaceutical, and chemical plant exhausts within a compact horizontal footprint
- Modular sections connect in series to add treatment stages where single-pass removal is insufficient for the inlet concentration or outlet target of the project
Standout Features & Benefits
Biological Scrubber
Biological scrubbers pass odorous air through a packed bed colonised by Thiobacillus bacteria that consume H₂S and sulphur compounds as a metabolic substrate, converting them to harmless sulphate and water without chemical reagents.
- pH monitoring only is required, with no continuous chemical consumption or carbon replacement, keeping operating costs low across high-concentration and variable H₂S duty
- Compact footprint occupies a fraction of the land area required by equivalent soil bed biofilter installations at space-constrained wastewater facilities
- Suited to wastewater treatment plants, pump stations, rendering plants, and pulp and paper facilities where continuous chemical scrubbing becomes operationally cost-prohibitive
Venturi Scrubber
Venturi scrubbers accelerate contaminated air through a constricted throat where high-velocity collision with injected scrubbing liquid atomises droplets that trap soluble gas molecules and particulates simultaneously.
- Variable throat damper maintains constant pressure drop across wide inlet flow rate variations, sustaining removal efficiency during operational load changes
- Tangential inlet ports keep vessel walls fully wetted, eliminating wet-dry boundary scaling that causes corrosion on standard spray tower inner surfaces
- Suited to high-particulate streams from rendering cookers and food processing exhausts where packed beds would blind rapidly from solid loading
Venturi Wet Scrubber with Packed Bed
A venturi wet scrubber combines a low-pressure venturi pre-scrub stage with a structured packing mass transfer column, delivering two-stage mechanical and chemical removal in a single compact vessel.
- First-stage venturi removes coarse particulate and high-concentration gas fractions; packed column polishes residual soluble gas compounds to outlet concentration targets
- Counter-current liquid and gas flow maximises contact time and mass transfer, achieving higher VOC and acid gas removal than single-stage venturi systems alone
- Venturi gas scrubber configuration handles mixed H₂S, ammonia, mercaptans, and VOCs within one treatment unit without separate downstream polishing stages
Vertical Tower Scrubber
A vertical tower scrubber uses counter-current packed column flow where contaminated air rises through structured packing while recirculating scrubbing solution flows downward across the packing surface.
- Sodium hydroxide or hypochlorite dosing chemically oxidises H₂S and dissolves acid gases, achieving strong removal efficiencies at moderate capital cost across municipal wastewater applications
- Wet packed scrubbers in vertical configuration handle high gas flow volumes at low pressure drop, suiting headworks ventilation, sludge processing, and primary treatment extraction duties
- Multi-height access doors allow column inspection and re-packing without taking the scrubber vessel out of service, reducing maintenance downtime at continuously operated facilities
Horizontal Crossflow Scrubber
A horizontal crossflow scrubber passes contaminated air horizontally through a vertical curtain of structured packing irrigated by downward-flowing scrubbing liquid, treating gas and eliminating mist in a low-profile vessel.
- Low installation height suits indoor plant rooms and equipment enclosures where vertical tower configurations require structural modifications to accommodate
- Voc scrubbers in horizontal crossflow configuration treat mixed organic and inorganic streams from food processing, pharmaceutical, and chemical plant exhausts within a compact horizontal footprint
- Modular sections connect in series to add treatment stages where single-pass removal is insufficient for the inlet concentration or outlet target of the project
Application Area
Wastewater Treatment Plants
- Headworks ventilation, primary sedimentation, and sludge thickening areas use Odour Control Units to treat high-volume odorous airstreams extracted under negative pressure from covered process tanks
- Biological scrubber installations at municipal plants deliver field-verified removal efficiencies satisfying both environmental authority requirements and community amenity expectations
- Voc scrubbers at biosolids drying and dewatering facilities address the mixed organic compound emissions that chemical scrubbers alone cannot treat cost-effectively
Pump Stations and Sewers
- Fan-extracted air from large municipal pump stations connects to biological or chemical scrubber units delivering continuous H₂S removal without high reagent consumption or carbon replacement
- Venturi wet scrubber configurations handle variable airflow surges from pump stations during storm inflow events without loss of treatment efficiency above dry-weather design conditions
- Compact skid-mounted units install within existing pump station buildings or adjacent enclosures without requiring dedicated treatment structures at individual sites
Rendering and Food Processing
- Rendering cooker and evaporator exhausts carrying high H₂S, ammonia, and organic compound loads use venturi gas scrubber and biological scrubber combinations to meet industrial air quality permit requirements
- Food processing exhaust streams from fermentation, cooking, and waste handling use air washers and packed tower configurations to reduce odorous emissions affecting surrounding properties
- Multi-stage systems combining venturi pre-scrubbing and packed tower polishing address complex mixed odour profiles that single-technology systems cannot treat to permit levels at high-load sites
Industrial and Chemical Facilities
- Pulp, paper, fertiliser, and chemical production facilities use vertical tower scrubber configurations with dual-stage chemical dosing to treat reduced sulphur and acid gas streams to regulatory discharge limits
- Horizontal crossflow scrubber configurations serve indoor pharmaceutical and food manufacturing plant rooms where installation height is constrained and space efficiency is the primary criterion
- Motorised damper assemblies at multi-source industrial extraction systems allow individual process areas to be isolated during maintenance without interrupting treatment at connected facility areas
FAQ
What is the key difference between a biological and a chemical scrubber?
A biological scrubber uses bacteria to consume H₂S without reagents, giving lower operating costs at high concentrations; a chemical scrubber uses continuous dosing but responds faster to variable inlet conditions.
When is a venturi scrubber preferred over a packed tower?
Venturi scrubbers suit particulate-laden streams that would blind a packed bed; packed towers are more efficient for purely gaseous streams where maximising mass transfer is the primary requirement.
How do vortex separators function within an odour control system?
Cyclonic action removes entrained liquid droplets from the treated airstream before discharge, protecting downstream ductwork, fans, and stacks from corrosive moisture carry-over.
Can these systems retrofit to existing extraction ductwork?
Yes, skid-mounted packages and modular damper assemblies connect to existing fan and duct infrastructure, adding odour treatment without replacing the established extraction system.
What maintenance does a biological scrubber require?
Routine maintenance covers periodic pH monitoring, nutrient dosing checks, and spray header inspection with no carbon replacement or regular chemical deliveries required.
Are these systems suitable for indoor pump station installation?
Yes, compact skid-mounted and horizontal crossflow configurations install within existing pump station buildings without requiring a separate dedicated treatment structure at the site.
