Bau yang disebabkan daripada kilang kelapa sawit telah menjadi isu utama alam sekitar dalam industri kilang kelapa sawit di Malaysia. Kolam efluen adalah sumber utama bau. Ia dianggap bahawa perlepasan dari kolam terutamanya didorong oleh kadar pemprossesan. Bau yang tidak diingini ini bukan sahaja memberi kesan kepada kebimbangan kualiti udara tetapi juga kawasan sekitar perumahan dan institusi. Oleh itu, perlaksanaan kolam tertutup dan tangki telah diperkenalkan untuk menghilangkan bau daripada kolam anaerobik kilang kelapa sawit. Penutup kolam dan tangki digunakan secara meluas di seluruh dunia dalam usaha menangani masalah bau, tetapi penggunaannya di Malaysia masih rendah, terutamanya kilang kelapa sawit. Dalam kajian ini, tiga kilang kelapa sawit yang berbeza telah dipilih iaitu kolam terbuka, kolam bertutup dan tangki percerna untuk membandingkan perlepasan bau dari tiga sistem yang berbeza ini dan untuk mengenal pasti had bau untuk kilang kelapa sawit. Penilaian bau telah dilakukan di lokasi menggunakan olfaktometer SM-100 disebelah kolam anaerobik yang terbuka, kolam anaerobik yang bertutup dan tangki pencerna anaerobik. Selain penilaian bau di tapak, fluk hood dan ruang vakum telah digunakan untuk persampelan bau di kolam penyejukan dan sampel akan dihantar ke makmal untuk dianalisis of olfaktometer dinamik. Ujian kepekatan ammonia dan hidrogen sulfida juga telah dijalankan keatas sampel persempelan bau untuk mengenal pasti jumlah ammonia dan hidrogen sulfida telah dilepaskan ke atmosfera. Sampel POME juga telah diambil di tiga tiga kolam penyejukan untuk mengenal pasti ammonia, hidrogen sulfida dan jumlah pepejal. Berdasarkan kepada keputusan, had bau untuk kilang kelapa sawit adalah 57,000 OU/m³. Purata jumlah bau yang dilepaskan kolam tidak bertutup adalah 3387 OU/m³, kolam bertutup sebanyak 185 OU/m³ dan tangki percerna sebanyak 4.0 OU/m³. Apabila menggunakan kolam bertutup, jumlah pengurangan perlepasan bau adalah sebanyak 95% and 99% apabila menggunakan tangka percerna. Oleh itu, dengan pengunaan perlindungan bagi sistem rawatan efluen, dapat mengawal perlepasan bau ke atsmofera.
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Odours caused by Palm Oil Mill operations have become a major environmental issue in the Palm Oil Mill industry in Malaysia. Effluent pond is the major source of odours. It is assumed that the odour emission from ponds are mainly driven by pond loading rate. This undesirable odour will not only affect the air quality concern but also the surrounding residential and institutional area. Therefore, the application of pond cover and tank digester had been implement to remove the odour from palm oil mill anaerobic pond. Pond cover and tank digester is widely used over the world in dealing with odour problems but the use of this system in Malaysia is still low, especially for Palm Oil Mill. In this study, three different Palm Oil Mill had been choose open pond, covered pond and tank digester to compare the odours emission from this three different system and to identify odour limit for palm oil mill effluent. Odour assessment was performed on site, using the SM-100 In-field olfactometer next to the anaerobic pond, anaerobic covered lagoon and anaerobic tank digesters. In addition to in-field odour assessments, flux hood and vacuum chamber being used for odour sampling at the cooling pond and sample had been send to laboratory for dynamic olfactometry analysis. Ammonia test and hydrogen sulfide concentration were also done on odour sampling sample to identify amount of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide had been released to atmosphere. POME sample were also being collected at this three cooling pond to identify ammonia, hydrogen sulphide and total solid. Based on the result, the odour limits for palm oil mill effluent is 57,000 OU/m³. Average of odour emission from uncovered lagoon is 3387 OU/m³, covered lagoon is 185 OU/m3, and for tank digester is 4.0 OU/m3. Total reduction of odour emission when using the covered lagoon is about 95% and 99% when using the tank digester. Therefore, by using cover and tank digester for effluent treatment system, can control the odour emission to atmosphere.