Kiran, Author at Swirltex

How does Swirltex help municipalities while treating wastewater?

Kiran — Tue, 08 Nov 2022 19:05:33 +0000

How does Swirltex help municipalities while treating wastewater?

One of Canada’s major sources of surface water pollution is municipal wastewater. Municipal wastewater is defined as wastewater from households and industrial activities. The wastewater from households is primarily caused by activities like flushing the toilet, cleaning, personal uses, etc. Influent must be treated before being discharged into the environment. 86% of wastewater treatment systems in Canada do not work to their full capabilities. Municipalities’ wastewater systems in Canada have daily flows of 100m³/day or more. Considering the high national wastewater discharge, the treatment process for it is very complex.

What challenges do municipalities face while treating wastewater?

Every year, municipalities are looking for solutions on how to be more efficient. Being efficient with water treatment is very important to keep costs down and reuse water. These treatment plants have to follow regulations set by the government for cleaning wastewater. There are several challenges that municipalities face in treating their wastewater. Listed below are the top three challenges that have become hurdles for them to achieve efficiency:

Populations and businesses are growing at such a rapid pace that municipalities are struggling to keep up. Such older equipment uses a lot more energy than a modern system. Such high energy consumption leads to higher costs for the system, which further leads to high bills for the average person. Engineers are at a crossroads because they want to upgrade the system, but the cost to do so can approximate what they pay for high energy consumption. Systems are designed to run with minimal hurdles and automatically adjust flow rates, but this has become harder to achieve.
Populations and businesses are growing at a rate that municipalities are finding hard to catch up to. These systems were designed a long time ago, when conventional methods were the main source for getting your wastewater treated. They are not equipped to handle such high volumes of wastewater. Even though systems can handle overflow when it happens, they can only hold it for a day or two, which is usually not enough time to find an alternate solution. During such situations, engineers are sometimes forced to release untreated water back into the environment.
With the world ever-changing and advancing, contaminants in wastewater also change. Newer contaminants, which are found in modern-day wastewater, cannot be treated with an old system. Municipal wastewater contains a wide range of contaminants like organic waste, microorganisms, TSS, chemicals, etc. To be able to remove these contaminants, our patented technology is the most ideal solution out there.

How can Swirltex help in treating wastewater?

Swirltex uses an ultrafiltration water treatment method as it is very cost-effective for improving water quality. Our system is an addition to the existing system, which eliminates steps in wastewater treatment. In contrast to conventional treatment techniques, the system ensures high-quality effluent that can be marketed for recovery, reuse, or recreational use. Because of the modular shared infrastructure between communities, our service is adaptable. Our service includes maintenance, and our client only pays for results. For crops and industries that depend on water, our approach opens up new possibilities. Additionally, it is economical for businesses to transform an environmental risk into a resource.

Our team is prepared to increase productivity and efficiency at your city’s wastewater treatment facility. If your system needs repairs, we offer the most efficient services you need. From process optimization to module fabrication, our team of engineers is the dream team every city needs. Give us a call if you need high-quality permeate at a low cost. Check out our municipal case study for more information.

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How can mining companies benefit from water reuse and cost savings using the Swirltex technology?

Kiran — Thu, 27 Oct 2022 18:41:59 +0000

How can mining companies benefit from water reuse and cost savings using the Swirltex technology?

Water is a resource that is crucial to all kinds of mining operations. In this sector, precious metals are typically recovered from the ore using water. The mining industry has a major negative impact on water, caused by a variety of reasons. Either it is reducing the water supply or it is contaminating bodies of water with waste rock impoundment discharge. We all rely on water, yet there are growing hazards to it from human activities like mining for ore or heavy metals. Generally, mining wastewater contains high levels of acid contaminants and suspended solids. Wastewater generated by mining processes critically requires treatment as the influent include contaminants and other solids. As a result, polluted wastewater is not recycled or dumped back into the environment.

Water Scientists claim that there will be a water shortage within next two generations!

How much usage of water do mining companies have?

Public acceptance of mining requires global sustainability awareness and regulations that have fostered better water practices in the industry. There can be several mining wastewater treatment procedures, which often involve distinct stages and technologies. The price people pay for using these minerals every day can be extremely high. By its very nature, mining consumes, diverts, and potentially pollutes water resources.

Even though there have been improvements to mining practices lately, significant environmental risks still exist. One of the major problems is that, lately, more and more mining processes can be mechanized. Hence, it can lead to a significant increase in mining waste. According to 500 water scientists, people will be forced to live with severe water supply problems within the span of the next two generations if necessary actions to save water are not taken. Climate change and water pollution are the main factors in this water shortage in the future.

In most mining operations, water is sought from groundwater, streams, and ponds. Water is primarily used in mining for slurry transport, dust separation, and mineral processing. In most mining operations, water is sought from groundwater, streams, and ponds. However, mine sites are located in areas where water is already scarce, like local communities. Authorities from these local communities often don’t support the water usage done by these mines.

Why do these companies need to reuse water?

According to a survey done by CDP, 64% of businesses have experienced detrimental water effects in the past five years. The report also mentions that flooding, diminished water quality, and water shortages have major impacts caused by processes in this industry. Moreover, this leads to an increase in operating costs for more than half of the impacts mentioned above. The mine water is usually stored in above-ground dams or underground caverns. There is a necessity for mining wastewater treatment to ensure an environment with no pollution. Water pollution has become a key concern for global ecologists around the world. So, what should companies do to make water reusable?

How can Swirltex help in reusing water and cost savings?

Mining companies are looking into treating their wastewater. However, the treatment options available are costly. With Swirltex’s technology, complex waste streams can be treated while saving costs. Our system separates solid waste contaminants (TSS, TOC, Iron, and other contaminants) based on buoyancy while producing high-quality permeate for reuse. Even though the treatment is essential, having to spend such OPEX and CAPEX makes companies detour from this route.

At Swirltex, our clients save costs in several ways:

1. Our system’s minimal maintenance requirements.
2. A decrease in membrane fouling.
3. A fraction of the energy used by an average system.

We achieve where others fail in the most challenging applications. With systems that are effective, efficient, and created to consistently produce excellent outcomes, Swirltex is the filtration of the future.

Curious to know how efficient our technology is? Check out our Coal Case Study to see our results!

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Clean Technology Achieves Sustainability

Kiran — Tue, 30 Aug 2022 18:22:40 +0000

Clean Technology Achieves Sustainability

Climate change affects the environment and it is a threat to mankind; it has become a dire necessity to achieve sustainability. With world leaders focusing on sustainability goals and COP26 in full swing, clean technologies have become more important than ever. Clean technology plays an essential role in preserving the environment and working toward building a clean and green future. Sustainability focuses on the ecological balance between economic growth and the environment, where the major emphasis lies on ecological balance as economic growth occurs solely within the limits of natural resources. Canadian law requires industrial companies to return natural resources to their original state, however, the water used by these companies often gets neglected and disposed of leading to pollution in local water bodies

What is Clean Technology?

Let’s start by focusing on what it means to be considered a “clean technology.” Clean technology also known as clean tech, refers to a technology that avoids environmental damage to the ecosystem. This is achieved using materials and processes to reduce and ultimately eliminate the creation of pollutants. By eliminating pollutants, we can reduce our negative environmental footprint and preserve the ecosystem. Generally, these companies attempt to keep the environmental burden of technology at the bare minimum, so they leave room for the environment to grow and heal on its own. All clean technologies should use these listed attributes in order to achieve their goals:

· Safe disposal of unwanted waste

· \ Optimal use of all the materials

· Maximization of recycling unavoidable waste

· Prevention of accidents

· Prevention of releasing pollutants into the environment

Almost all cleantech companies seek to positively make a difference in climate change and be economically viable for them to be profitable to attract investments. There is nothing in this world that can outweigh the importance of life on earth. This ideology is a key point that attracts investors as clean technology is the only way to a sustainable future.

Why are Clean Technology Water Treatment Companies Important?

We have reached a point where life on our planet is in danger, and we need to work towards achieving sustainability. Major sectors for clean water technologies to focus on are:

· Sustainable energy and energy optimization

· Clean water and facilitation of water reuse

· Pollution reduction

· Treatment of toxic waste

Wastewater management, especially focusing on the industrial sector, is critically important as it will not only help in leaving a positive environmental footprint but also address new regulations made to preserve the environment. The threat of water scarcity has become serious, as two-thirds of the world’s population might face water shortage by 2040. This threat can become more concerning by the amount of water that gets permanently contaminated by industrial influents. Moreover, gallons of water go to waste by these companies which could instead have been reused. This is where clean water technologies come in handy. Not only can they treat wastewater but also extract and recycle the chemicals added to the influent. Water technology innovators are approaching these problems with new techniques like membranes, using thermal energy, and others that allow for the extraction of valuable minerals. These innovations can help the world to achieve its ultimate goal; “less waste means less damage to the overall environment.”

What are Sustainability Goals and Trends?

In 2015, the UN set up 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) to save life on earth. One of SDG 6 focuses on ensuring a clean and stable water supply with sanitation for all people by 2030. To prevent 66% of the world’s population from facing water scarcity, reusing and recycling water is the only viable solution. As global temperatures are rising, third-world countries have been starting to get affected by droughts, famine, and malnutrition. If these trends keep continuing by 2030, 1.6 billion people will lack safely managed drinking water, 2.8 billion people will lack safely managed sanitation, and 1.9 billion will lack basic hand hygiene facilities. There have been 6 targets set by the UN to ensure the availability and sustainability management of water and sanitation:

Targets by 2030

6.1 Achieving universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all.

6.2 Achieving access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all end open defecation. Especially focused on women and girls in vulnerable situations.

6.3 Focusing on improving water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping, and minimizing the release of hazardous chemicals and materials. Moreover, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and significantly increases the recycling and reuse of water.

6.4 Significantly, increases water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensures sustainable withdrawals of freshwater to enough supply for water scarcity.

6.5 Implementing integrated water resources management at all levels, even at transboundary cooperation if possible.

6.6 Protecting and restoring water-related ecosystems.

Indicators

6.1.1 Percentage of population using safely managed drinking services

6.2.1 Percentage of the population having access to the hand-washing facility with soap and water.

6.3.1 Percentage of domestic and industrial wastewater safely treated
6.3.2 Percentage of water bodies with good water quality

6.4.1 Bring changes in water efficiency
6.4.2 Making proportion of freshwater accessible

6.5.1 Degree of integrated water resources management
6.5.2 Percentage of transboundary basin area with an operational arrangement.

6.6.1 Bringing change in the extent of water-related ecosystems over time.

ALERT!!!

Mississippi in Water Crisis After Treatment Plant Fails...

The people of the city of Jackson, Mississippi have been informed by their governor to not drink water, even if they still have access to it. That running water would soon become unavailable as their water treatment plant failed. 150,000 residents of the city are not able to drink, cook, flush or brush their teeth until this situation is resolved. The city had already been on a boil-water notice for a month prior, but the situation is said to have gotten worse as the treatment plant had been struggling for a long time. The city is unable to provide the state with a timeline as to when the situation will get better and when the plant will be in operating condition.

A common wastewater issue in municipalities is aging infrastructure’s inability to support population growth, as repair costs are high. Across the world, lagoons are experiencing challenges with discharge compliance, capacity, and maintenance. Furthermore, municipalities typically cannot add a cell or build a treatment plant without additional funding. Some clean technology companies are able to work with a municipality’s current wastewater infrastructure and can be even given support by the government as a reward for aiming for ESG initiatives.

Is Swirltex a Clean Tech Company?

Yes, here at Swirltex we have a vision of net-zero wasted water with our facilitation of water reuse. Our patented system uses low energy consumption and leaves a low negative environmental footprint. Our produced water case study provides evidence of how we are a cleantech company. We helped a Canadian oil & gas company filter their produced water which led to the following:

By facilitating water reuse, Swirltex was able to reduce approximately 8,000 tonnes of CO2e/yr with the elimination of trucks on the road used for disposal.
Up to a 75% reduction in freshwater consumption, thus saving an average of 357,000 m3 of freshwater per year
Industry-leading, sustainable energy resource producer, ESG impact with sustainability goals and reduced impact on seismic activity concerns

Do you think clean tech water treatment companies make a difference in leading the initiative toward a sustainable future?

Tell us your thoughts…

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Swirltex Presented at Shale Water Management Conference

Kiran — Tue, 23 Aug 2022 17:40:13 +0000

Swirltex Presented at US Shale Water Management

Shale Water Management USA 2022 is an exhibition and conference, where shale operators, supply and service companies met with leading water management experts, and key regulators in Houston, Texas. The purpose was to explore new cost-effective water treatment, sourcing, disposal, and storage solutions. Additionally, finding new initiatives for more efficient water management are being explored, as operators seek optimal performance and low-cost management strategies. With the latest regulations and environmental considerations rising, implementing these strategies has become highly important.

Key Focuses Of The Shale Water Management Conference

In trying to keep the OPEX down, operators are faced with the choice of adopting either “low-cost disposal” or ”treatment for reuse” strategies. Approximately, 60 to 70 percent of the total cost of disposal is attributed to water-hauling and transportation expenses. OPEX costs can vary depending on the proximity of the producing wells. This conference helped shale operators and water experts in finding new innovative options to recycle and reuse produced water. Some of the key topics for this year’s conference focused on:

· Finding low-cost and low-risk solutions in water treatment, reuse, and recycle

· Evaluating options to choose the most efficient and feasible treatment for reuse and water disposal

· Focusing on upcoming regulations and industry standards for produced water management

· Look over operational case studies and develop a successful water management program

Swirltex’s President and Chief Technical Officer Presented At The Conference

Peter Christou, Swirltex President and CTO presented a paper ” A Spin On Oily Treatment” at the conference, where he focused on explaining Swirltex’s technology and how it can help treat produced water. Swirltex did a project for an oil and gas company. The client had an underperforming oil removal system which led to high TSS, oil content, iron & bacteria in wastewater. We worked on removing contaminants and reducing OPEX and CAPEX for the purpose of reusing treated produced water. Our patented buoyancy-enhanced technology separates contaminants from the water, where contaminants pass through the center of the membrane while water through the membrane surface.

Want to know how Swirltex Technology can help treat complex wastewater? Send us an email at sales@swirltex.com or check us out on:

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Swirltex Attends Produced Water Society – Permian Basin

Kiran — Wed, 17 Aug 2022 17:28:10 +0000

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Swirltex Attends Produced Water Society – Permian Basin

The Produced Water Society is a 501 (c)(3) educational organization serving water professionals in the oil and gas industry. The society’s mission is to improve produced water management which benefits the environment and the industry by fostering a range of discussions and opportunities. These discussions are done for water professionals to learn from one another at the society’s live events, luncheons, and growing online community. They host an annual seminar, where technical presentations, panel discussions, and training takes place to deliver the commitment to the industry. An important part of this is ensuring that produced water is applicable to environmental regulations and standards are analyzed by appropriate methods.

Annual Permian Basin Conference

This year’s annual PWS Permian Basin event brought together industry-leading speakers to address the produced water issues. Issues faced by operators, water midstream companies, and water service providers. Industry experts discussed the existing solutions, and technological innovations, and produce water management best practices needed to get the most productive results.

Swirltex’s President Presented At The Conference

Peter Christou, Swirltex President and Founder presented his paper “A Spin On Oily Treatment” at the conference. He focused on explaining Swirltex’s technology and how it can help treat produced water. The paper discusses a produced water case study, a project which Swirltex completed for an oil and gas company. The client had an underperforming oil removal system which led to high TSS, oil content, iron & bacteria in wastewater. We worked on removing contaminants and reducing OPEX and CAPEX for the purpose of reusing treated produced water. Our technology demonstrated that it can treat complex wastewater streams by injecting high pressured air into the membranes to enhance the buoyancy of contaminants. Which makes contaminants flow through the center of the membrane, while permeate flows along the surface

Want to know how Swirltex Technology can help treat complex wastewater? Send us an email at sales@swirltex.com or check us out on:

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Produced Water – A Complex Waste Stream

Kiran — Tue, 09 Aug 2022 17:52:17 +0000

Produced Water - A Complex Waste Stream

Globally, approximately 250 million barrels of water are produced daily from oil and gas fields, of which 40% is discharged into the environment. Produced water (i.e., PW) is known to be very hard to treat. Oil and Gas Companies are realizing that water is becoming scarcer, regulations are becoming more stringent and disposal methods are becoming more expensive. What viable option is left for the oil and gas industry to preserve clean water? Beneficially re-using produced water is the only and most viable option to save water for the future.

What Is Produced Water?

Produced water is a term used for wastewater in the oil and gas industry. Most natural oil and gas-bearing rocks contain water and during the extraction process, PW becomes a byproduct of it. This wastewater contains various contaminants like soluble and non-soluble oil, suspended solids, chemicals used in the drilling process, dissolved organic compounds, and more. The composition of produced water can vary from well to well and its flow rate. Additionally, different contaminants and compositions of produced water determine how it is treated, used, and/or disposed of. The degree of its treatment depends on the site’s treatment requirements – typically deep well injection, evaporation ponds, or discharge of surface water.

What Are The Challenges Associated With Treating Produced Water?

Treated PW known as effluent streams once recognized as “waste” now can be considered a valuable “resource.” The large quantities of treated PW generated from oil and gas production worldwide can be used for various applications. However, various challenges are leading to the treatment of produced water as follows –

· High Treatment Costs.

· Potential chronic toxicity of the treated produced water.

· Complex composition, making it hard to treat.

· Public acceptance to use it.

· Since the amount and properties of this wastewater change over time, making it an unlikely solution for most applications.

ARC Project

Swirltex was awarded a water treatment project with ARC Resources Ltd., a leading Canadian Oil and Gas company in April 2022. The project is valued at $3 million with potential scale-up for future higher treatment volumes. We have been actively working on this project and technology in progress right now.

Let Swirltex Help You Treat This Complex Wastewater!

Here at Swirltex, we can treat the toughest wastewater streams. We treat wastewater with our patented buoyancy-based membrane filtration system. When we receive raw produced water, we conduct a chemical treatment before membrane ultrafiltration to assist removal of waste. This process is done to prevent membrane fouling and increase the permeate production rate. Once this is done, the chemically treated sample is fed through our ultrafiltration system for purification. The raw produced water is fed into the system where we inject micro-gas to enhance the buoyancy of contaminants. We then induce spiral flow to separate contaminants and permeate, leading the waste to flow through the center of the membrane while permeate flows along the membrane surface. Our technology beats other technologies in treating produced water as we use low energy consumption, reduction in membrane fouling, low CAPEX & OPEX while providing high-quality permeate production.

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Clean Tech Success

Kiran — Tue, 02 Aug 2022 17:45:32 +0000

Clean Tech Showcase Success

Swirltex’s Innovative Design Earns Its Place At PNWER’s Clean Tech Showcase

Last week, our team had the privilege of participating in the PNWER’s 2022 Clean Tech Showcase. The PNWER (Pacific Northwest Economic Region) is a non-profit organization, spanning Pacific Northwest regions of both Canada and the United States. Since 1991, PNWER’s has been a hub of collaboration and progress. With various industries and sectors present, leaders and innovators convene to share knowledge and ideas, explore regional challenges and develop plans for the future.

Swirltex’s innovative design and core values embodied the Summit’s main message to embrace corporate and environmental responsibility. This year, the Showcase featured businesses that are “developing technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and fight climate change.” Not only does Swirltex’s innovative design reduce GHG emissions but it also unlocks water-reuse potential for the most difficult waste streams. By combining buoyancy manipulation with a unique annular flow, our system delivers exceptional performance with minimal environmental footprint. At Swirltex, our clean tech takes environmental stewardship even further. With the goal of net-zero wasted water, Swirltex’s clean tech is set on becoming the chosen brand for unlocking water re-use and disrupting how wastewater is managed across all industries.

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Lithium Extraction – The Mineral We Didn’t Know We Needed

Kiran — Thu, 14 Jul 2022 17:17:28 +0000

Lithium Extraction - The Mineral We Didn't Know We Needed

Lithium is a highly reactive alkali metal that offers excellent heat and electrical conductivity. However, there are many factors contributing to the lithium industry’s wastewater which is produced during the extraction process. Toxic waste is a major problem in the lithium brine extraction process. There is an abundant reserve and increasing demand, for the extraction and separation of lithium from salt-lake brines worldwide. During lithium extraction from brine, undesirable ions are removed by sequential evaporation/precipitation in large surface ponds, processes. These processes are environmentally intrusive, inefficient, and slow.

What Are The Potential Industries? And Where Is It Applicable?

The world’s demand for lithium brine extraction is growing every day. Lithium has many industrial uses going from glasses, ceramics, pharmaceuticals, and aluminum and magnesium alloys industries. It is used in glass production where lithium increases the durability, corrosion resistance, and thermal resistance for use at extreme temperatures. However, its highest potential use in is the battery industry. It is especially driven by an increased lithium use in the new consumer electronic battery technologies and electric cars in the battery industry. Lithium is used as an electrode and electrolyte material in lithium disposable batteries and lithium-ion rechargeable batteries. Even though many know what lithium is how it is produced remains a mystery to many.

Lithium extraction and processing can heavily depend on the source of the metal. commercial lithium arises from two major sources: brine deposits from underground and mineral ore deposits. Lithium compounds are produced in a variety of forms including lithium carbonate (Li₂CO₃), lithium oxide (Li₂O), and lithium hydroxide (LiOH). The Government of Canada has identified lithium as a critical mineral because it is a key material in the renewable energy transition. Canada shows potential to be a supplier in the renewable energy industry.

How Is Lithium Extracted From The Brine?

Lithium is the lightest metal on earth, which is so soft that it can be cut with a knife. Extracting this metal isn’t an easy task, the process is done by accessing underground deposits of brine water and ore. Major lithium production takes place in the so-called Lithium Triangle, high up in the Andes, where Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile meet. Only some sources of lithium are cost-efficient and logical for extraction. The extraction done from salt-rich waters first must be pumped to the surface into a series of large evaporation ponds. Where solar evaporation occurs over several months, the extraction process is very straightforward but time-consuming. Over the months, the water slowly evaporates, and a variety of salts precipitate out, leaving brine with high lithium concentration.

At this stage, the brine has significant numbers of unwanted elements. Elements like magnesium hydroxide and calcium boron salts. During the evaporation process, a slurry of the hydrated line (Ca (OH) ₂) is added to the brine to get rid of the unwanted elements. When lithium reaches a significant concentration level, the brine is pumped to a recovery facility to extract the metal. This process includes the following steps:

· Brine Purification to remove the left unwanted elements

· Chemical treatment to precipitate out the outcome, i.e., lithium and then filtering it

· Treatment with soda (Na₂CO₃) to precipitate out lithium carbonate (Li₂CO₃)

· Washing and drying of lithium carbonate into the final project for its further usage

Another method to extract lithium is mainly from hard rock mines which is done by extracting the mineral from open pit mines and then roasting using fossil fuels. This uncovers dispose of the overburden in the waste dumps and often involves displacing thousands of acres of dirt and rock. The process has major effects on the environment like disrupting nearby land and eradicating plant life.

Why Is Extracting Lithium Important?

The global market for lithium is growing rapidly, the production rose from 25,400 to 85,000 tonnes alone from 2008-2018. Lithium prices have doubled in 2018 because of the increase in demand. The leading cause of an increase in demand for lithium is its use in the batteries of electric vehicles. However, battery usage is not limited to cars there are EVs, laptops, phones, and other digital devices which also use rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. But what is the leading cause for such an increase in demand and production for lithium?

Following are the reasons for this –

· With the increasing demand for electric cars, the need for lithium-ion batteries for its production has obviously gone up

· Rising consumer awareness, in regards to going green and government incentives, is supporting the rise in EVs sales, hence the increase in batteries sale.

· Since 2013, battery prices have fallen by 80%. Also, further cost declines could follow with technological improvements leading to becoming a more feasible option to use.

Most countries have started planning the road map to phase out fossil fuel vehicles, to switch to zero-emission cars. Zero commission cars like battery electric vehicles and fuel cells. It is forecasted that the demand will continue to rise as manufacturers will fulfill the demand for green battery products.

What Are The Problems Associated With Lithium Extraction?

Even though lithium extraction is the new norm, its footprint on the environment cannot be overseen. Green plants and trees remove excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere during photosynthesis and lithium mining hinders this from occurring. They use heavy machinery which consumes a lot of energy and produces various toxic gases, including carbon dioxide. Locals in some areas complained about increasing droughts, which can threaten livestock farming or vegetation drying out.

The extraction process also led determine to what extent the extraction of saltwater leads to an influx of fresh water and how much it influences the groundwater. The process itself requires a lot of water and to extract one tone of lithium, it takes 500,000 gallons of water approximately. This high-water requirement puts a halt to farming activities in many parts of the world. This can mean mining the metal makes little economic sense but leads to depleting the fertile land. The brine lost 95% of the used gallons of water for the precipitation process to begin. The lithium extraction process lets too much water to evaporate.

Swirltex’s Solution

With the extraction process, there is a significant amount of wastewater generated which becomes impossible to reuse. So, what are we going to do if we run out of water needed to produce lithium? How can we prevent this? Swirltex’s innovative technology can satisfy both economic and environmental concerns. Its unique membrane system can separate solids and wastewater based on buoyancy. Swirltex’s patented technology improves removal efficiency without the costly, long-term operational issues associated with conventional filtration systems. Our system beats the rest because we leave a low environmental impact, have low energy consumption, and provide permeate with high quality.

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Coal Water – Tiny Particles, Huge Problem

Kiran — Tue, 05 Jul 2022 17:38:00 +0000

Coal Wastewater - Tiny Particles, Huge Problem

As the future of energy shifting towards renewable energy sources, coal is becoming less favorable. The industry’s decline is attributed to major environmental concerns associated with coal mining. Mining processes consume vast amounts of water—approximately 250 liters of water per one ton of coal—to prevent equipment from overheating and coal dust from catching fire. Water is essential for mining activity but coal wastewater is highly contaminated and impossible to re-use. Because the pollutants in coal wastewater are extremely fine, existing filtration systems struggle to produce high quality permeate. As a result, wastewater regulations are becoming increasingly difficult to meet. In the United States, regulatory compliance costs coal-fired plants around $200 million USD every year. It is no surprise that many coal plants are closing operations in response.

Coal mining brings environmental and regulatory challenges with it; however, coal is a crucial resource. As of 2021, the global coal mining industry is worth $790.63B USD. Moreover, coal powers 37% of the world’s electricity and is a key ingredient for steel manufacturing. Clearly, we need coal but the strain it puts on the environment cannot be ignored. What this industry needs is a solution for handling coal wastewater.

What’s In Coal Wastewater

Coal wastewater is the perfect opportunity to showcase the effectiveness of Swirltex’s technology. Given a coal wastewater sample, Swirltex identified four main contaminants:

- Fecal Coliforms
- Total Suspended Solids (TSS)
- Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen (TKN)
- Total Organic Carbon (TOC)

Without careful management, these contaminants cause serious environmental damage. Excess nitrogen causes rapid and excessive plant growth thus suppressing the growth of other, slower growing plant life. Similarly, excess organic carbon accelerates bacteria growth which disrupts the surrounding ecosystem. Furthermore, fecal coliforms indicate manure is present in water which can cause serious illness.

Cleaning Coal Wastewater

For this project, Swirltex focused on removal efficiency. Our team conducted a flux performance comparison to gauge the effectiveness of the Swirltex system versus standard ultrafiltration practices.

As shown, Swirltex’s technology produced excellent results. All contaminant categories saw at least 98% reduction which exceeds industry standards for contaminant removal. Compared to the standard 3 m/s flux velocity, Swirltex’s system used 1 m/s flux velocity while achieving a 240% increase in permeate production. As such, the Swirltex system outperformed standard systems with minimal energy consumption. Our system delivered superior results while achieving higher flux and stabilizing faster than competing ultrafiltration systems.

The advantages of Swirltex’s membranes go beyond filtration itself. After cleaning, Swirltex membranes recovered 93% of their initial performance versus the 6% performance recovery of the non-Swirltex system. Swirltex’s exceptionally performance recovery is possible because of the system’s unique flow-pattern. Annular flow is induced within each tubular membrane as the wastewater enters the system. The vortex of water keeps the contaminants in the center of the tube while clean, treated water exits through the membrane walls. This ensures that contaminants have minimal contact with the membrane itself, preventing irreversible damage to the membrane walls.

Swirltex Solution – The Finest Solution

Swirltex’s ultrafiltration system easily removes the finest particles from coal wastewater, consistently producing high-quality permeate. In terms of removal efficiency, energy consumption, and ease of maintenance, Swirltex’s ultrafiltration is superior to its competition. Our buoyancy-enhanced membranes separates solids and liquids for greater permeate production and higher quality effluent. Our clean technology facilitates water re-use to help reduce the strain on global and local water supply. Swirltex provides exceptional removal efficiency without the maintenance costs of conventional filtration systems. Our patented technology treats challenging wastewater streams at higher throughput, lower energy consumption, and in a broader range of climates. Swirltex’s technology meets or exceeds performance expectations and regulatory standards. Simply put, we succeed in the toughest applications where others cannot. Swirltex is the future of filtration with systems that are efficient, effective, and designed to deliver superior results again and again.

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Wastewater Treatment – The Swirltex Story

Kiran — Tue, 28 Jun 2022 15:29:04 +0000

Wastewater Treatment - The Swirltex Story

June 27, 2022 – Water quality and re-use opportunities have improved greatly over the recent years, apace with shortage of clean water. Wastewater treatment plants generally use coagulation, sedimentation, filtration, and disinfection methods to treat water. Unfortunately, the results from these methods are not as effective. They often fail to control pathogen outbreaks efficiently, or the quality of product water varies with feed water quality. Swirltex President & Founder, Peter Christou, solved these problems by finding an efficient solution for tough wastewater streams. Hence, he came up with the innovative membrane system where solids and liquids are separated based on buoyancy.

Origin Story – Where It All Began

With an environmental engineering background, Peter has been the problem solver in regards to environmental sustainability and water treatment. He previously worked with ceramic membranes in the oil and gas industry. These membranes are convenient because oil residue can easily be removed with high strain chemicals. However, this produced poor results with significant reduction in flux and low quality permeate. He took on the challenge and tried to think of ways to solve this. At that time the industry standard was to make membranes out of a material which rejected oil. Peter on the other hand, started to think about ways to prevent oil from touching the membranes.

Peter took a different approach compared to conventional methods by using hydraulics to spin the water. This pushed the oil to the center and kept it away from the sides of the membranes. Surprisingly, there was not much information about this process on the internet. He started experimenting with membranes in his garage with his kids and made a huge discovery. The technology was able to succeed in oil-water separation but had yet to explore other potential applications. Wastewater is highly contaminated, very difficult to treat, and some streams are considered non-reusable. Peter entered this niche market with a revolutionary technology that facilitates water re-use in applications where it would normally be impossible.

Idea Becoming a Reality – Revolutionizing Wastewater Treatment

Peter’s first challenge was to find a way to keep wastewater clean enough to be re-used. He injected air to enhance the buoyancy of contaminants, then inducing the spiral flow, separating it from the permeate. This way gas/solids/oil will flow through the center of the membrane tube and water flows along the membrane surface. He was experimenting on a Saturday with wastewater treatment, where his method led to significantly higher flux, which surprised Peter. He looked in the bucket and found the concentrated solids floating and he was extracting liquids based on buoyancy.

In 2015, the idea became a reality and Swirltex was born. It was time to test the technology on a larger scale. Swirltex had a breakthrough opportunity to apply the technology at the Concordia Research Station in Antarctica. It would be an understatement to say that the technology worked–it was incredibly successful. “Swirltex made history at Antarctica’s Concordia station after its water treatment system became the highest altitude operating membrane plant in the world,” said Phil Heindenreich from Global News. With this technology, Swirltex transformed wastewater into usable water at an altitude where many other technologies had failed before. “What we’ve done is really set new environmental standards for stations operating in Antarctica,” said Peter.

Swirltex’s Outlook – Bringing A Change In The Wastewater Treatment Industry

In the beginning, the company focused on water re-use applications. Over the years, Swirltex has unlocked new doors in treating industrial wastewater. There is high demand for an effective and environmentally friendly solution. Swirltex is ready to take on a challenge of treating more complex wastewater streams with high concentrations of contaminants. Swirltex was awarded a project to supply our patented “Buoyancy Enhanced Membrane Filtration” technology for produced water treatment. This partnership is with ARC Resources Ltd., a leading Canadian energy producer in the Montney region. The project is valued at $3 million with the potential upside for scale up at higher treatment volumes. This partnership showcases the value Swirltex has to offer in treating the toughest wastewater streams.

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