27.10.2022
M Vest Water today announces a major technology breakthrough with the patented NorwaFloc® product.
MVW has, at one of the very largest European mechanical dredging sludge dewatering sites, in a full-scale qualification test, successfully treated dredging sludge for dewatering.
Dredging operations is a large industrial and municipal market segment in Europe. Rivers, harbours, and lakes are continuously dredged for sludge at the bottom bed. This large mechanical dredging sludge treatment site consumes far more flocculants to separate and dewater sludge than the entire Oil & Gas Industry on the Norwegian continental shelf. Currently used flocculants in sludge dewatering are synthetic. These are targeted and set to be reduced in general by legislation and operators due to their negative environmental impact.
NorwaFloc® is MVW’s patented combined bio-flocculant and coagulant in one product which in this treatment application was dosed into sludge from river dredging operations for subsequent separation from water and settling of the separated sediments followed by further mechanical press-dewatering of the sediments. The dewatered sediments are then transported and used for landfill and the clean water is returned to the river.
MVW has in full-scale at the client’s site treated dredged sludge and water at a flow rate of 2 000 m3/h for settling of the sediments and discharge of water.
Left sample shows incumbent synthetic chemical, right shows NorwaFloc® which provides faster and more efficient sedimentation and a clearer water phase in comparison.
A subsequent 25% reduction in use of their currently used synthetic chemical was also achieved in the subsequent mechanical dewatering process of the sludge by additional use of NorwaFloc®. In addition to cleaner water discharge, the use of NorwaFloc® resulted in improved dryness in the sludge by several percent.
In total the qualification test duly verified cost saving potential and environmental gain for the client and the industry in general by obtaining large reduction in use of unwanted synthetic chemicals, cleaner water discharge and substantially more dry sludge for transport to land fill with 25% less synthetic flocculant polymers in this sludge.
Prior to entering commercial phase in the dredging market segment, a repeated full-scale verification under winter conditions is planned for in January 2023 with the client, where such also aim even further optimization.
An important milestone has now been achieved and the company is entering the large sludge dewatering markets in Europe with NorwaFloc® products attractive to clients’ needs for cost and process optimization and reduced environmental impact of discharges and disposal.
Watch the sludge dewatering phase in action below:
Dewatering of settled sludge in the belt filter press. Use of NorwaFloc® reduces consumption of synthetic polymers with 25% and gives several percentages better dewatering efficiency.
Get in touch to explore how you can achieve cleaner and more cost-effective wastewater treatment without the use of synthetics.