Monitoring household garbage odors in urban areas through distribution maps

This paper presents an experimental study of the suitability of a mobile e-nose (carried on a bike) for the monitoring of unpleasant and potentially harmful odors in urban areas, likely coming from residential waste containers. The objective is to obtain a spatial and temporal representation of such odors by means of a gas distribution map, from which valuable information such as the location, or the time-intervals of maximum strength of the nuisance odors can be inferred. As a case of study, the results of a monitoring campaign carried out in a town in southern Spain are presented. The campaign comprises nine measurement runs distributed along three consecutive days, with a total path of more than 90Km. Upon the results, it is concluded the feasibility and potential of the approach, but also the need for a precise sensor characterization and for gas classification.