Cities Turn to BnG Systems To Improve Water Quality
The United States spent about $88 billion in water and wastewater treatment in 2005. As those costs continue to rise, the demand for effective water-treatment technologies increases.
Fayetteville's BlueInGreen is providing these technologies through two product lines: the Supersaturated Dissolved Oxygen Delivery System for oxygenation of water and the Hyperconcentrated Dissolved Ozone Unit for ozonation.
SDOX employs a mobile unit to inject oxygenated gas into water systems to improve oxygen levels and therefore the quality of the water. HyDOZ works like chlorine to remove microbes and chemical components from wastewater but without the dangerous side effects. Both systems use a patented approach for dissolved gas delivery that provides huge savings in water treatment compared to existing methods.
And municipalities and local governments have noticed.
The cities of Fayetteville and Springdale became two of BnG's first clients last year after being paired with the organization through Innovate Arkansas, a venture from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission and Winrock International that helps technology-based entrepreneurs and investors with business start-up needs.
Fayetteville's Noland Wastewater Treatment Facility uses the SDOX system to infuse oxygen into the treatment process, enabling bacteria to break down organic waste. Traditional methods used bubbles to add dissolved oxygen to the wastewater. But most bubbles rise out of the water, releasing the oxygenated gas into the atmosphere.
"We know we can do it in the lab," said Dr. Scott Osborn, BnG's co-founder and president. "But can we break through the cost barrier to make it an economically viable option?"
So far, the answer is yes. The SDOX system at the Fayetteville treatment plant not only has increased the amount of dissolved oxygen in the wastewater by almost 50 percent, but also used 79 percent less power than traditional methods.
Another application is the oxygenation of water bodies such as rivers and reservoirs.
BnG received a $500,000 grant last fall from the National Science Foundation to test the system on the North Fork River in northwest Arkansas. Naturally occurring low-oxygen levels in the river have been threatening the trout population, a major tourism draw. The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality even placed the river on its list of impaired water bodies.
SDOX was brought in to infuse oxygenated gas into sections of the river including water flowing from the Norfork Dam into the Norfork National Fish Hatchery. The system also is infusing oxygenated gas into the river directly below the dam during low-flow conditions, when oxygen levels in the river are lowest.
Official results are not yet available, but Osborn said that fish in the hatchery appear to be healthier than before the system was implemented. And trout fishermen have raved about the fishing in the river when the system is turned on.
A major selling point of the SDOX is its mobility. It can be transported directly on-site. Roughly the size of a horse trailer, the system uses a gas-powered generator to deliver the oxygenated water through a hose. The flow can be controlled and delivered at any depth.
The HyDOZ system is being used at Springdale's wastewater-treatment facility to determine if antibiotic residuals can be removed from the wastewater in a cost-effective manner. BnG received a $750,000 grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Services to conduct the study at Springdale with a goal of reducing operating costs and proving the system to be a practical treatment option.
The system also can be used to disinfect drinking water.
(To view a list of selected patents filed from Arkansas innovators, click here.)
