Odour in Ambient Air

Dear Colleagues,

Odour in ambient air has become a global environmental issue of increasing concern in recent years. This Special Issue of Atmosphere is open for the entire chain where odour can be relevant, including: (1) odour sources characterised by emission factors and treated by emission models, (2) the use of dispersion models to describe the transport and dilution of odour and odorous substances/mixtures in the atmosphere,(3) the assessment of relevant stimuli concentrations, (4) the assessment of odour exposure to estimate the expected odour annoyance by odour impact criteria, and finally (5) odour abatement strategies. All types of odorous substances related to industry (e.g., rendering plants, refineries), municipal plants (e.g., wastewater treatment plants, solid waste landfills), and animal husbandry are included. Although rapid progress was made in the last decade, some open questions deserve special interest. As far as the determination of odour emissions is concerned, these comprise, for example, uncertainties and limitations of olfactory and chemical analysis as well as odour prediction methods based on odour activity values and chemical concentrations. When estimating odour annoyance, the type of odour dispersion model, the kind of meteorological input data and the fact that odour impact criteria are defined on a national level (and thus vary from country to country) introduce uncertainties. Proposals for an international harmonization of odour impact criteria are most welcome, and are seen as an urgent undertaking for the scientific and regulator communities to ensure analogous separation distances for an equivalent level of protection in the future. Finally, contributions on odour perception in urban areas and agglomerations as well as possible mitigation plans are encouraged. The goal is to exchange ideas and to achieve a better understanding of the specific aspects relevant to odour in ambient air.

Dr. Martin Piringer
Prof. Dr. Günther Schauberger
Dr. Wenjing Lu
Guest Editors

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