Room-scale Study of the Effectiveness of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles in Reducing Gas Emissions from Swine Manure

Mixing zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles with the slurry was investigated in this study as a possible measure to control gas emissions from swine barns. The objective of this work is to determine the impact of the treatment on reducing the levels of ammonia and hydrogen sulphide gases emitted from swine manure as well as assess its effect on hog performance and manure properties. Two identical and fully instrumented environmental chambers at Prairie Swine Centre Inc. barn facility in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, that closely represent actual production conditions were used; one was treated with ZnO nanoparticles (Treatment) and the other one was remained untreated (Control). Three replicate trials, each lasting for 30 days, were conducted. During each trial, ammonia (NH3) and hydrogen sulphide (H2S) levels, manure properties and hog performance (average daily gain, average daily feed intake, water usage and manure production rates) were monitored in both chambers. Results showed that the addition of ZnO nanoparticles into the slurry can significantly reduce H2S level by more than 95% but has no significant impact on NH3 emission. The application of the treatment has no considerable effect on pig performance and physicochemical properties of the manure.