Aqua21 system neutralises industrial contaminants at point of discharge

Water treatment technology innovator Aqua21 is bringing its radical new approach to one of the biggest threats to water quality in the developed world: industrial contaminants.

Factories, industrial units, abandoned coal mines and spent oilfields often discharge water that contains high levels of contaminants such as iron and manganese. In populated areas this water should not be allowed to flow near populations or enter the river network untreated. But rendering this discharge safe is difficult and expensive.

Now Aqua21 plans to work with major industrial players to provide point of discharge treatment of water for the control of minerals. Ozonation — a powerful, safe and reliable form of water disinfection — is the key.

Aqua21 can use ozonation to deal with industrial contaminants at the point of discharge, removing unwanted minerals from water and rendering it safe to enter river systems. And the cleaning process is self-monitoring: Aqua21’s specially developed sensors allow users to ‘see’ the improving levels of safety as ozonation takes place.

Point of discharge treatment of water for the control of minerals has potential applications across numerous industries. The Aqua21 system is small enough to be applied to points of discharge that other treatment systems cannot easily reach, driving down treatment costs and improving safety.

Trevor Costello, co-founder, Aqua 21, says: “The ability to remove unwanted minerals from waters discharged from mines, factories or industrial units is a very attractive proposition. But until our technology was developed, it was costly and difficult. We believe that Aqua21 technology is not just timely, useful and cost-effective but ideally suited to this application.”