SuperStraw for odour reduction in animal beddings

曼尼托巴省和加拿大有大量的秸秆（作物秸秆），农民经常面临如何处理剩余秸秆的问题。秸秆处理的一种常见做法是在田间焚烧（秸秆焚烧）。然而，这种做法在许多司法管辖区要么被禁止，要么受到管制，因为焚烧秸秆会向大气中排放大量微粒物质和其他污染物（一氧化碳和挥发性有机化合物），造成环境和健康问题。虽然已经为各种市场机会探索了稻草，但这些市场大多数在经济上是不可行的。Biovalco创新产品公司（BIP）开发了一种基于吸管的吸湿产品（SuperStraw）。该公司计划进一步开发和改进SuperStraw，用于宠物床上用品等高价值应用。用于宠物床上用品的材料有两个最重要的要求——吸湿和减臭。BIP进行的研究表明，与传统的动物床上用品相比，SuperStraw具有出色的吸湿能力，但目前尚不清楚SuperStraw是否有效减少气味，更重要的是，它如何减少气味。在本研究中，我们将通过实验室实验来分析SuperStraw的减臭性能，并阐明SuperStraw减臭的机理。产生的科学信息将指导公司改进SuperStraw的工艺和配方，进一步提高产品的气味控制能力。

There is abundance of straw (crop residues) in Manitoba and in Canada and farmers often face the problem of what to do with leftover straw. A common practice of straw disposal is to burn it in the field (stubble burning). However, this practice is either prohibited or regulated in many jurisdictions because burning straw puts a significant amount of particulate matter and other pollutants (carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds) in the atmosphere, causing environmental and health problems. Although straw has been explored for various market opportunities, most of those markets are not economically viable. Biovalco Innovative Products Inc. (BIP) has developed a straw-based product (SuperStraw) for moisture adsorption. The company plans to further develop and improve SuperStraw for high-value applications, such as pet bedding. There are two most important requirements for a material to be used for pet bedding - moisture adsorption and odour reduction. BIP has conducted research that demonstrated the superb moisture adsorption capacity of SuperStraw compared to traditional animal bedding materials, but it is not known if SuperStraw is effectives in odour reduction, and more importantly, how it would reduce odour. In the proposed research, laboratory experiments will be performed to analyze the performance of SuperStraw in odour reduction, and to elucidate the mechanisms by which SuperStraw reduces odour. The generated scientific information will guide the company to improve the processes and formulations of SuperStraw to further enhance the odour control capacity of the product.