• Envirogen Technologies wins contract for MinX™ Low-Flow Drinking Water Treatment System in Suring, Wisconsin
KINGWOOD, TX, May 6, 2010 -- Envirogen Technologies Inc. (Envirogen) announced today that it has been awarded a contract for the Village of Suring, Wisconsin, to design and install a MinX™ high efficiency low-flow ion exchange system to perform arsenic removal at a well site previously restricted for use as a part of the Village's drinking water supply. MinX starts with Envirogen's proven ion exchange technology and packages it in a system that is specifically designed to handle low flow applications with high efficiency and lower overall costs -- both from an operating standpoint and a waste management standpoint. These systems are designed specifically to handle flow rates ranging from 35 -- 500 gallons per minute (gpm), and are suitable for removal of a range of contaminants. They offer a site-specific, highly reliable, low lifecycle cost treatment option to smaller municipalities requiring drinking water treatment - offering smaller operators a custom-fit technology alternative in a market segment dominated by off-the-shelf systems.
According to Rob Loken, Vice President, Great Lakes Region for Envirogen, the MinX system answers a need for more efficient technology at the small-system level by delivering many cost-saving benefits through superior process engineering. "By offering pre-engineered and packaged modular systems that achieve reliable, low-cost performance for the smaller utility, we hope to bring state-of-the-art drinking water treatment technology to a previously underserved sector of the municipal drinking water treatment community," Loken said. "Envirogen will always work with each of our clients to ensure that their exact needs are met with each system. Regardless of size, our customer still gets a high-performance customized system that fits within a small footprint, requires little or no operator attention, is fully automated and generates minimal waste. Our goal is to deliver the lowest lifecycle cost for these drinking water utilities while maintaining guarantees on performance," he continued.
The new MinX system for Suring will enter the construction phase shortly, with an expected start-up date in late summer 2010. Once installed, it will operate at 225 gpm and remove arsenic from groundwater at the Village's #2 well site, which was previously restricted from use for drinking water. Source arsenic concentrations from the well average 12 ppb, just above the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (USEPA) maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 10 ppb. The treatment goal of this system is less than 7 ppb arsenic. In addition, if the USEPA further reduces its arsenic MCL to 5 ppb, as is currently under consideration, the system can easily be adjusted to meet this or even lower effluent requirements.
The unusually low waste rate possible with this system design and the low utilization rate (pumping hours per day) were deciding factors in its selection at the Suring site. In a comparison to a coagulation-filtration treatment scheme, which was also piloted at the same time, the MinX system was able to treat the arsenic below the MCL in repeated start-up and shut-down tests, and produced less waste, with no operator interface. Since the site does not offer a drain to wastewater treatment, the waste generated will need to be collected and stored on site. The Envirogen system will produce a waste rate of less than 0.002%, or 0.2 gallons per 1,000 gallons of water treated, resulting in very low costs for waste handling and disposal. In addition, the MinX counter-current packed bed process features a high-capacity media bed and offers a long period of operation before regeneration service is required.
According to Loken, the MinX line of treatment systems is part of Envirogen's push to provide superior drinking water treatment solutions to customers of all sizes. "For the smaller municipal drinking water utility, it can seem a daunting task to meet tightening regulations and fluctuating source characteristics without the resources commanded by larger utilities," said Loken. "We're proud to offer a product line that answers the needs of the smaller utility with the same superior process engineering as our larger systems. These systems are optimized for low-flow applications and capable of handling various contaminants and feed conditions reliably and efficiently at a low cost," he continued.
Other product and service lines offered by Envirogen's Small Systems business include FlexSorb™ for 5- to 200-gpm systems, SimPACK™ for systems above 300 gpm, HyperSorb™ for 35- to 1,350-gpm applications, and Coagulation Filtration systems for flow ranges from 25 to 10,000 gpm. All are available either for equipment purchase or as a long-term technology+services water services agreement backed by a performance guarantee. For more information on MinX and other Envirogen small systems, visit www.envirogen.com.
About Envirogen Technologies Inc.
Headquartered in the Houston suburb of Kingwood, Texas, Envirogen is a technology+services solutions provider that designs, builds and implements systems for business in municipal and industrial water and environmental treatment applications. A primary focus for Envirogen is the concept of 'lifecycle performance,' in which the company provides guaranteed, pay-for-performance, long-term contracts at predictable costs that offer customers the lowest total cost over the lifetime of an equipment installation. Primary applications for Envirogen's systems include treatment of groundwater for the delivery of high-quality potable water, groundwater remediation, wastewater treatment, water re-use, nutrient removal, and odor and VOC control for municipal and industrial markets. In industrial markets such as mining, hydrocarbon processing and chemical processing, Envirogen also specializes in process water treatment, byproduct recovery and chemical purification. The company conducts business throughout the United States, with regional offices in Southern California, Illinois, New Jersey and Tennessee. For more information on the company, visit www.envirogen.com.
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