Surface Active Foam Fractionation (SAFF) PFAS remediation technology arrives in Minnesota

LAKE ELMO, MINNESOTA, USA / AGILITYPR.NEWS / November 29, 2022 / EPOC Enviro’s Surface-Active Foam Fractionation (SAFF®) water treatment plant for removing PFAS has arrived this week at Lake Elmo, Minnesota USA, ready to commence remediation works for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA).

The MPCA is the custodian of a landmark settlement with 3M, making the US clean-up site one of the highest profile PFAS impacted locations in the world.

This award-winning containerized system is just the third SAFF to arrive in the USA, and the first to be acquired by a state agency. It is one of 10 units currently in existence so far globally.

“Minnesota is a State which is on the front edge of PFAS remediation. We could not be prouder to have SAFF selected as a lead technology in this critically important work,” said EPOC Enviro Company President, Peter Murphy.

SAFF represents a sustainably engineered approach to PFAS remediation, where a combination of aeration and vacuum is used to elegantly ‘foam out’ 99+ per cent of target PFAS molecules, enabling treated water to be safely returned to the environment.

“We’ve used a green science approach to create SAFF and remove these persistent and toxic PFAS chemistries. Our objective was to create a simple, low-cost solution that produces no waste other than a high density PFAS concentrate and contributes zero environmental harm,” he said. 

SAFF leverages the natural physiochemistry of PFAS molecules to bond to the surface of air bubbles. With SAFF units now helping to remediate multiple PFAS sites on three continents, it represents a proven approach to permanently remove PFAS from the ecosystem.

“We now have a brilliant opportunity to showcase the value of years of sustainable engineering development in resolving these complex forever chemical remedial issues. This is a positive sign of change as the remediation community moves away from unsustainable adsorbent technologies.”

The system will be paired with AECOM’s DeFlouro Electrochemical Oxidation Cell technology, ensuring permanent destruction of these forever chemicals.

The SAFF unit will be deployed on a flat-bed trailer and towed to several publicly accessible PFAS impacted sites within the Minnesota locality, allowing citizens to witness the technology first-hand. Deployment of the SAFF signals the MPCA’s commitment to commencing tangible and meaningful remediation activities within PFAS impacted catchments.

Allonnia, who are EPOC’s exclusive North American Agents, have now begun commissioning the SAFF so it can begin remediating surface and lake waters within the affected catchment areas.

ENDS

More information on SAFF: www.epocenviro.com  and   https://allonnia.com/

Animation showing how SAFF works: www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUutrt3VFYU

SAFF news: www.linkedin.com/company/78794299/admin/

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA): https://www.pca.state.mn.us/

MPCA Media Release: https://www.pca.state.mn.us/news-and-stories/mpca-brings-cutting-edge-technology-to-minnesota-to-remove-pfas-from-water

USA distributor: https://allonnia.com/

Media enquiries: Michelle Mahon, EPOC Enviro Communications Manager – mmahon@opecsystems.com

WHO IS EPOC ENVIRO? Protecting and improving our environment

EPOC Enviro (known in Australia and under contract to the MPCA as OPEC Systems) is an award-winning environmental engineering firm. The EPOC acronym stands for ‘Emerging Pollutants of Concern’. 

Our mission is to develop and implement clever and practical engineering solutions on a global scale to permanently remove PFAS and other emerging contaminants from the environment. 

At EPOC Enviro, we proudly apply the principles of intelligent design, sustainable engineering and green chemistry to our capability.  

Since 2014, EPOC scientists and engineers have worked collaboratively with clients and stakeholders to develop and patent remedial solutions to remove PFAS from water, soil and hardstand. 

WHO IS ALLONNIA?

Allonnia is a bio-ingenuity company dedicated to extracting value where others see waste. We believe elegant solutions to the world’s biggest problems will be found in the world’s smallest organisms. We’re pioneering novel approaches and imaginative combinations in biotechnology and engineering to solve waste challenges in nature, using nature. To learn more visit allonnia.com

WHAT IS PFAS?

PFAS are a family of synthetic compounds widely used globally to make products that resist heat, oil, stains, grease and water. PFAS compounds break down very slowly over time and are recognised as an ‘emerging contaminant’ with widespread concerns about their characteristics of persistence, bioaccumulation, toxicity and impacts on human health. 

SAFF® GLOBAL DEPLOYMENT

Queensland, Australia: Groundwater remediation of ex-firefighting training area. Permanent Facility, 400m3/day. Australian Department of Defence, May 2018

Stockholm, Sweden: Removal of PFAS from Landfill Leachate Facility. Permanent Facility, 330m3/day. Envytech, Jan 2021

Helsingborg, Sweden: Removal of PFAS from Landfill Leachate. Three-month Full-Scale Field Trial, 330m3/day. Envytech, Oct 2021

Brottby, Sweden: Removal of PFAS from Landfill Leachate Facility. Three-month Full-Scale Field Trial, 240m3/day. Envytech, April 2022

Stockholm, Sweden: Removal of PFAS from Landfill Leachate Facility. Three-month Full-Scale Field Trial, 240m3/day. Envytech, April 2022

Confidential Site, UK: Removal of PFAS from highly contaminated Foam Deluge System. Two-week Full-Scale Field Trial, 240m3/day. Cornelsen/Envytech, April 2022

Maine Landfill, USA: Removal of PFAS from surface water. Three-month Full-Scale Field Trial, 500m3/day. CDM Smith, June 2022

New South Wales, Australia: Removal of PFAS from Landfill Leachate. Permanent Facility, 350m3/day. Shoalhaven City Council, June 2022

Massachusetts Landfill, USA: Removal of PFAS from Landfill Leachate. Two-month Full Scale Field Trial, 330m3/day. Allonnia, July 2022

Confidential Site, East Coast USA: Groundwater remediation of ex-firefighting training area. Three-month Full Scale Field Trial, 400m3/day. CDM Smith, Sept 2021

Grand Rapids, USA: Removal of PFAS from landfill leachate at a commercial waste-water treatment facility, Permanent Installation, Allonnia, September 2022

Stockholm, Sweden: Groundwater remediation of ex-firefighting training area at Major Airport. Permanent Facility, 400m3/day. Envytech, Oct 2022

Confidential Site, UK: Removal of PFAS from PFAS impacted drainage channels from historical fire fighting training activities. 12 month Filed Trial, 350m3/day Cornelsen/Envytech, October 2022

Confidential Site, Spain: Removal of PFAS from highly contaminated Foam Deluge System. One-year Full Scale Field Trial, 50m3/day. Envytech, Oct 2022

Minnesota, USA: Removal of PFAS from surface water. Multi-year Full Scale Field Trial, 500m3/day. Minnesota Pollution Control Agency/AECOM, Oct 2022