Ammonia in livestock

With the current nitrogen emission problems, the livestock farmer can monitor himself how much ammonia emission actually takes place on his own farm. The farmer can then take appropriate measures in his process to meet the emission requirements.

Why ammonia sensors in the stable:

• Livestock farming goes from means requirements to goal prescription: Sensors for ammonia together with ICT enables the farmer to monitor and take well-founded management measures.
• The farmer can permanently monitor the ammonia emissions and adjust the processes (housing method, feed strategy, manure processing, climate control, downstream technologies, etc.) based on the measured concentrations.
• The ammonia sensor can be used universally and can be linked to climate controls and ammonia reducing systems. The ammonia sensor can thus function as a fully automatic and permanent control parameter within these systems.
• Example of control: Ammonia controlled manure scraper, Automatic Controlled Natural Ventilation (ACNV) for dairy farming or climate control by means of ammonia-controlled ventilation for pig farming and calf farming, efficiency monitoring of air washers.
• The effects of emission reduction in the stables improves welfare and animal health.
• The effects of emission reduction in the stable increase the value (economic aspect), which results in higher yields.
• Insight into local ammonia emissions from the stable (source) offers tools for reducing emissions with more factors than just spreading technology, soil and crop type.
• Ultimately, the goal of farmers is to lose as little nitrogen as possible and to achieve the highest possible production with limited nitrogen loss.
• This system calculates the total emission and makes it transparent to the user by a web-portal.

With this new innovation, EMS produces and supplies ammonia sensors for use in stables. With these permanent gas sensors, the ammonia concentration is continuously monitored and, for example, the climate can be controlled. 

Ammonia or NH3 has a widespread use in many industrial and agricultural sectors and is one of the most produced substances in the world. Dealing with ammonia also takes place in livestock farming. Stables with calves, pigs and poultry generally have a climate in which increased CO2 and ammonia concentrations are present. These concentrations of ammonia are generally difficult to measure. With the introduction of the MACView®-NH3 Gas Sensor, reliable and continuous measurement in stables has become accessible.

Ammonia concentrations in the atmosphere occur from a few ppbs. Ammonia is toxic to humans if it occurs in concentrations from a few ppm and requires an effective solution for detection and protection in most industrial environments. Traditional sensor technologies (such as electrochemical and semiconductor detectors) show serious disadvantages in selectivity, service life, accuracy, functional safety and the high costs of maintenance.

EMS has developed an ammonia sensor especially for livestock farming based on the principle of optical measurement technology that no longer has these disadvantages. With this measurement technology, accurate and reliable continuous measurement can be made.

Application 1:Space measurement of ammonia and CO2

The ammonia emissions come from metabolic activities related to bacteria in the livestock farming of poultry, cattle and pigs. Ventilation in the stables must be managed to prevent critical exposure of animals to ammonia which in the long term results in animal stress and inflammation, reduced health and productivity. It is useful to monitor the concentrations of ammonia and to link the measurement signal to the ventilation. Processes can thus be made transparent and the climate is improved fully automatically via the climate computer by controlling the ventilation in the house on the basis of the ammonia concentration. This improves processes and animal welfare. This ultimately results in lower costs and higher quality and production.

Application 2: Measurement of ammonia and CO2 emissions 

For livestock farming, it is useful to know the actual emissions per house. With the measuring system it is possible to make clear what the actual ammonia and CO2 emissions are. This is possible when an optional air flow sensor for air quantities is connected to the sensor. The flow rate from the stable is therefore measured, and the total ammonia and CO2 emissions are determined from this. Changes in concentrations are caused by changes in processes in the house.

Application 3: Efficiency measurement of NH3 air scrubbers

By determining the efficiency of ammonia from air scrubbers, disruptions of the air scrubbers can be observed easily and above all quickly. The samples are taken fully automatically by the sensor at the entrance and the exit of the air washer. The efficiency measurement allows the farmer to easily monitor the entire system with just 1 sensor.

Application 4: Environmental Monitoring of NH3

Due to the very high accuracy of the sensor, the NH3 concentration in the environment can be measured. The sensor measures up to ppb concentrations with regard to the resolution and accuracy. There are different measurement ranges. The NH3 sensor with the smallest measuring range of 0-2.5 ppm is eligible for this and has a standard deviation of 6 ppb over the entire measurement range.

mymacview.com

All data is available quickly and easily via the mymacview.com portal. The measured concentrations are automatically sent from the MACView®-NH3 sensor via the internet to the portal. The user can log in to the portal with a login name and password. Graphs of the measured concentrations are visible on the portal. The portal also offers options for downloading data in well-known file formats such as Excel, PDF, or images. It is possible to make settings where the user is periodically (for example every day at a fixed time) informed with the measurements of the last 24 hours. Alarms can be set that are sent by e-mail. From the protal, rights can be assigned by the owner or user and users can be created who can view the data.

Advantages

• Extremely high selectivity of the ammonia measurement.
• No cross sensitivities.
• The sensor is not affected by exposure to hydrogen sulphide (H2S), CO2, water vapor, temperature, combinations of aromatic compounds such as CxHx alkanes (methane, ethane etc.), nitrogen oxides, CO and H2.
• Functional safety, continuous status reporting.
• Virtually unlimited sensor life.
• Easy maintenance, automatic calibration, (no regular replacement and / or calibration of the sensor itself) (of course, filters must be replaced over time by the user himself).
• High sampling rate, 1 measurement every 15 minutes.
• Efficiency monitoring is possible through the 2 inputs.
• Pump and valves are integrated.
• Sensor functions well in all percentages of relative humidity and in a temperature range of -5 ° C to 40 ° C.
• These properties make the sensor excellent for measuring ammonia concentrations in the agricultural environment.

Summary

The MACView®-NH3 Gas Sensor is a reliable gas measurement system that has overcome the disadvantages of other measurement principles. The use of this system focuses more on monitoring, process monitoring and prevention. Particularly for farmers who want to know which processes are taking place in and around the barn, this measurement system provides a clear insight into the business process and air quality. By understanding these processes, the business process can be further optimized and improved. Part of this process is: Reduction of emissions, reduction of disease pressure, improvement of air quality, improvement of the process and a clean and safe working environment. A simple tool is made available through the mymacview.com portal to view data. No tricky software or technology, no software installations.

The MACView®-NH3 Gas Sensor is pure ease of use.