BOSTON & CLOVERDALE, CA, Jan. 16, 2014 -- The world's first and only industrial-scale, bioelectrically-enhanced wastewater treatment and reuse system was recently installed at a major California brewery.
Unveiled by Cambrian Innovation, a water and bioenergy technology provider, and Bear Republic Brewing Company, Inc., the EcoVolt water treatment system was implemented at Bear Republic's brewery in Cloverdale, Calif. The product employs a bioelectric technology to treat wastewater and generate biogas, transforming waste into an asset.
Bear Republic is the first brewery to purchase the energy-positive system, which will cut water treatment costs, generate clean water and energy for use on site, as well as significantly reduce its CO2 footprint. Likewise, the brewery expects to cut operational costs annually, supply more than 10 percent of the facility's requirements with recycled water, and generate enough clean heat and electricity to eliminate more than 50 percent of the site's baseload electricity use.
The bioelectrochemical system also converts carbon dioxide directly into high-quality biogas that can be used on-site to generate both heat and electricity for Bear Republic's production process. Further, electrically-active organisms rapidly eliminate 80 to 90 percent of the biological oxygen demand (BOD). The EcoVolt is expected to deliver an annual return on investment of more than 25 percent.
The EcoVolt installation includes a headworks unit, modular reactors for treatment, and a packaged combined heat and power system. The reactors are delivered on a flatbed truck and are the size of a cargo shipping container, enabling rapid and simple system installation and commissioning. The modular design enables food and beverage companies to incrementally add capacity as they grow, reducing upfront capital expenses.
Beer brewing is a water-intensive industry, typically consuming up to ten times the amount of water for beer produced. The EcoVolt water treatment system enables varying types of water reuse ranging from tank washing to irrigation, cutting sewer charges substantially while ensuring a stable water supply for the city of Cloverdale.
About Cambrian Innovation
Cambrian Innovation is developing biotechnology solutions that extract energy from water. Spun out of MIT in 2006, Cambrian has scaled and validated its proprietary bioelectric technology across several solutions with partners ranging from NASA and the Department of Defense to National Science Foundation and Clos du Bois Winery. Cambrian's flagship technology, EcoVolt, enables the food and beverage industry to cut water and energy costs by simultaneously treating wastewater and generating energy. For more information, visit www.cambrianinnovation.com.
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