In “Natural gas leak detection and what to do,” I discussed methods of detecting, isolating and what to do in the event of a gas leak. I noted that the true first alert for detecting natural gas is the nose thanks to the smell, which raises the question – what is natural gas odorization?

While most associate natural gas with a rotten egg smell, what causes the strong odor is natural gas odorant. Contrary to what most people believe, natural gas by itself is extremely difficult to detect with our senses. Being an extremely volatile hydrocarbon and not easy to identify – makes a dangerous combination.

One of the processes during natural gas production is gas odorization, which is adding odorant to natural gas so people can detect it. The impetus behind odorizing natural gas goes back to one of the worst tragedies in the U.S. history. In 1937, in London, Texas, natural gas ignited and blew up a school, killing nearly 300 children and teachers. Following the accident, Texas and other states adopted standards to regulate the odorization of natural gas. The Natural Gas Industry goes through great efforts to deliver this fuel safely from the wellhead to the burner. Today, federal regulations mandate the odorization of natural gas.

One of the companies Linc Energy Systems represents is Zeck Systems. The Zeck family has been involved in the natural gas industry for generations, and continuing a family tradition, Mark Zeck formed Zeck Systems in 2003. The company provides odorant injection instrumentation to accurately dose natural gas streams throughout various phases of production, transmission and distribution. These odorants belong to a group of organosulfur compounds which give natural gas that distinct odor, as mandated in federal safety guidelines.

Zeck Systems was recently acquired by Sentry Equipment Corporation in late 2010. To view more about Zeck Systems visit Odorization is the cornerstone of damage prevention.