Effect of Negative Air
Ionization
on Ambient Particulates in a Hatching Cabinet
By Mitchell Bailey
Interpretive Summary:
Starter chicks for broiler houses
are produced in hatcheries throughout the United States which often produce
several hundred thousand chicks each week in hatching cabinets. These
cabinets are one of the primary sources for salmonella contamination of
poultry. Extensive dust is generated during the hatching process from egg
shell and feather particles which become airborne. Previous research has
demonstrated that a single salmonella contaminated egg could contaminate all
eggs and newly hatched chicks in a hatching cabinet. Two types of
electrostatic air charging devices were tested for their ability to remove
dust from air in a poultry hatching cabinet and to determine their potential
for reducing airborne transmission of salmonellae. The devices were tested
in a hatching cabinet with ambient dust which had a good cross section of
particle sizes to determine their basic effectiveness prior to testing in an
operational hatching cabinet with fertile eggs. Dust removal efficiencies
ranged from an average of 92.2% for the larger device, a 6-Bar Ionizer, to
81.1% for the smaller device, a 3-Bar Ionizer. The effectiveness of the
ionizers for removing dust suggests that this type of system has good
potential for reducing airborne transmission of disease in hatching
cabinets. Reducing most of the dust in hatching cabinets and containing it
within a collection device would also reduce the effort required to clean
exhaust air from the numerous cabinets in a hatchery and to clean other
areas of the hatchery - all of which are potential sources of contamination.
Contact:
SE Poultry Research
934 College Station Road
Athens, GA 30604
Email:
baileym@bae.uga.edu
Approved Date:
1997-08-31
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