US EPA

10392 

Journal Article 

Odor threshold determinations of 53 odorant chemicals 

Leonardos, G; Kendall, D; Barnard, N 

1969 

Yes 

Journal of the Air and Waste Management Association
ISSN: 1096-2247
EISSN: 2162-2906 

19 

91-95 

In order to assist in assessing potential odor problems arising from chemical manufacturing operations, the odor thresholds of 53 commercially important odorant chemicals have been determined using a standardized and defined procedure. The odor threshold data previously available have shown wide variation reflect-ing the diversity of procedures and techniques used. Factors that may affect the odor threshold measurement include the mode of presentation of the stimulus to the observer, the influence of extraneous odorants in the presentation system, the type of observer used, the definition of the odor response, the treatment of the data obtained, and the chemical purity of the odorant. The experimental approach used has minimized these variations. The odorants were presented to a trained odor panel in a static air system utilizing a low odor background air as the dilution medium. The odor threshold is defined as the first concentration at which all panel members can recognize the odor. The effect of chemical purity has been deter-mined by measuring the odor threshold of materials representing different modes of manufacture or after purification by gas chromatographic procedures. The threshold concentrations range over six orders of magnitude. Trimethylamine exhibited the lowest threshold (0.0002 1 ppm volume); methylene chloride was not recognizable below 214 ppm. Of the 53 chemicals, sulfur bearing compounds exhibit low threshold values on the order of parts per billion. Aside from the sulfides, it is not possible to anticipate the odor threshold of a material based on its chemical structure or functionality.