Sulfur Chemiluminescence Detectors

Volatile sulfur compounds are a cause of many nuisance odour impacts. Quantification of these odorants can be complicated by transformation and non-targeted analysis.   

As such the UNSW Odour Lab has a specific unit targetting 11 key common volatile sulfur compounds. Coupled with the use of specific gaseous sulfur standards this allows for reliable quantification.  

Sulfur chemiluminescence converts sulfur compounds in the GC eluant to sulfur dioxide which can be detected by a photomultiplier.  

The unit is also coupled with an NCD for the analysis of nitrogen containing odorants. The unit allows for direct gas sampling using Markes AirServer and has a cold trap appropriate for sulfur compounds. 

Applications

This technique is widely used for the targetted analysis of challenging organic volatile sulfur compounds including mercaptans (methyl mercaptan, ethyl mercaptan) and sulfides (DMS, DMDS, DMTS). These are very common odorants in a variety of waste management industries (wastewater treatment, landfills, livestock).  

The method has been used to determine baselines for process operation as well as odour control device effectiveness 

To find out more about this technique, get in touch with Odour@unsw.edu.au

Relevant Publications 

Fisher RM; Le-Minh N; Alvarez-Gaitan JP; Moore SJ; Stuetz RM, 2018, 'Emissions of volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) throughout wastewater biosolids processing', Science of the Total Environment, vol. 616-617, pp. 622 - 631, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.10.282 

Wang B., Sivret E.C., Parcsi G., Stuetz R.M. 2015, Determination of VOSCs in sewer headspace air using TD-GC-SCD. Talanta 137, 71 – 79 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talanta.2014.11.072