Human Responses to Environmental Odors

Human Responses to Environmental Odors presents some of the approaches to the study of the human olfactory response. This book contains 11 chapters that describe the complexity in human olfaction. This text deals first with the sensory and physicochemical aspects of odor. These topics are followed by discussions on the sampling, transport, dispersal, odor intensities and preferences, and psychophysical scaling. The discussion then shifts to the applications of some previously slighted fundamentals, such as vapor pressure phenomena and the chemical stability of odorants in the atmosphere. Other chapters are devoted to community odor problems and annoyance reactions, combustion odors, and laser Raman spectroscopy. These chapters include odor measurement and control. This book is of great value to flavor scientists, chemists, physiologists, and behavioral scientists.

List of Contributors

Preface

Psychophysical Scaling of Odor

Attributes of Odors

Scales of Measurement

Construction of a Psychophysical Scale

Comparison of Scaling Techniques

Form of the Psychophysical Function

Procedural Variables

Adaptation, Masking, and Mixtures

References

An Evaluation of Community Problems Caused by Industrial Odors

Introduction

Attitude Surveys

Sensory Techniques

National Survey of the Odor Problem

Social and Economic Impact of Odors

Chemical and Instrumental Methods

References

Lasar Raman Spectroscopy

I. Introduction

II. Principles of Vibrational Spectroscopy

ΙII. Raman Instrumentation

IV. Applications of Raman Spectroscopy to Chemical Problems

V. Special Topics

VI. Epilogue

References

Method and Theory in the Study of Odor Preferences

Theories about Odor Preference

Studies of Children’s Judgments of Odors

The Origin of Odor Preferences

Familiarity and Odor Preference

The Study of Odor Associations

Summary and Conclusions

References

Sensory Evaluation of Odor Intensity at the Source and in the Ambient Air

I. Introduction

II. Equipment

III. Methods for Sensory Source Strength Analysis

IV. Sensory Evaluation of Odorous Air Pollutants in the Ambient Air

References

Transport and Dispersal of Odors

I. General Characteristics of Dispersion in the Atmosphere

II. The Specific Odor Dispersion Problem

III. A Field Study to Check the Theoretical Odor Dispersion Model

IV. Conclusions and Recommendations

Appendix: Determination of the Parameters σyr, σzr, and σzc

List of Symbols

References

Vapor Pressures and Raoult’s Law Deviations in Relation to Odor Enhancement and Suppression

I. Introduction

II. Vapor Pressures in Odorant Mixtures

III. Evaporation of Odorant Solutions

V. General Conclusions

References

Combustion Odors—A Case Study

Introduction

The Dose

The Response

Summary

References

Sampling in Airborne Odorant Analysis

I. Introduction

II. Types and Methods of Sampling

III. Reproducibility and Accuracy in Quantitative Vapor Sampling

IV. Necessity for Organoleptic Tests in Practical Odorant Studies

V. Vapor Dilution Methods for Determinations of the Efficiency of Procedures for Odorant Cumulation

References

Annoyance Reactions to Environmental Odors

Reactions Studied in Different Odor Surveys

Variations in Reactions in a Population That Are Not Caused by Variations in Exposure

Results of Some Investigations of Annoyance Reactions Caused by Offensive Smells

Conclusions

References

The Stability of Emitted Odorous Compounds in the Atmosphere

Introduction

Reactions of Importance for the Air Chemistry of Hydrogen Sulfide and Organic Sulfur Compounds

Conclusions from Observations at Atmospheric Conditions

Removal of Hydrogen Sulfide and Organic Sulfur Compounds from the Gas Phase by Adsorption

Discussion

References

Subject Index