Date of Graduation
12-2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science in Poultry Science (MS)
Degree Level
Graduate
Department
Poultry Science
Advisor/Mentor
Hargis, Billy
Committee Member
Parsons, Benjamin
Second Committee Member
Garritty, Chip
Third Committee Member
Graham, Danielle
Keywords
Enterobacteriaceae; Feed trucks; Fumigation; Gas; O3; Ozone
Abstract
Salmonellosis is caused by the foodborne pathogen Salmonella enterica, a rod-shaped, gram-negative bacterium belonging to the family Enterobacteriaceae. Contamination of poultry or poultry by-products with Salmonella can result in substantial economic losses for the poultry industry. Escherichia coli, another member of the Enterobacteriaceae, is also commonly associated with opportunistic infections in poultry. Because poultry feed can serve as an initial point of microbial entry into flocks, the objective of this thesis was to develop a model using E. coli- or Salmonella-contaminated swabs to determine whether ozone gas can be used to control Enterobacteriaceae contamination inside four- or eight-bin aluminum poultry feed trucks. Four different ozone generators were evaluated to determine optimal application duration and to assess reductions in gram-negative bacterial recovery from contaminated swabs suspended at various locations within the feed truck, relative to contaminated swabs placed in a non-treated truck. These experiments were conducted to better characterize the capabilities and limitations of ozone fumigation and to explore its potential as a more efficacious alternative to conventional chemical disinfectants. Chapter 1 provides a general introduction to the thesis. Chapter 2 includes a literature review of the antimicrobial properties of ozone and the traditional ozone application methods used in agricultural systems, with emphasis on commercial poultry production. Chapter 3 describes the evaluation of ozone generators for fumigating poultry feed trucks, using contaminated swabs as proxies to monitor antimicrobial activity following treatment.
Citation
Martin, K. (2025). Investigation of Ozone Gas Fumigation as a Form of Disinfection for Aluminum Poultry Feed Trucks. Graduate Theses and Dissertations Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/6078
