January 2021 Newsletter

From the CEO's Desk

Is it too late to say Happy New Year? From all of us at Digested Organics, we hope you and your families had a safe and enjoyable holiday season. Our outlook on 2021 is positive: we are starting several large digestate management projects in the Midwest; we just signed up an exclusive representative for landfills to tackle PFAS and other leachate challenges; we’re hiring new team members in engineering, controls, and fabrication; and we’ll be moving to a larger facility in Plymouth, Michigan in March. We are excited to continue working with customers around the globe who are looking for sustainable filtration solutions that solve waste disposal challenges, create circular economies, and provide triple bottom line value.

Join Us for a Zoom Webinar: Stillage Filtration for Distilleries and Ethanol Plants

On Thursday, January 28th at 2:00 PM ET we will be hosting a live webinar about our work using stainless steel Ultrafiltration (UF) and Forward Osmosis (FO) to process whole and thin stillage from distilleries and fuel ethanol plants. The presentation will provide an in-depth look at the equipment installed at Wilderness Trail Distillery (operating for over a year) as well as work done at multiple other sites. Please use the zoom link below to join us live:
https://zoom.us/j/98300969038?pwd=L0VKSXJDNk5tU2hCcVF4Y1NSZnBqQT09
Passcode: 793107

Studies Demonstrate Value of Raw Manure Concentration

Want to make more biogas without expanding your digester? Want to improve hydraulic residence time in your digester to increase pathogen kill? Have you considered concentrating dilute streams of raw manure using Digested Organic’s UF system? Recent studies completed by Digested Organics at multiple dairies in the Midwest have confirmed that raw manure can be concentrated to dramatically reduce its volume prior to digestion with little loss in volatile solids. This is ideal for parlor wash wastewater (usually a mixture of water and manure), or thinner manure from flushed flumes or sand lanes. We have shown we can remove 50-75% of the manure volume as UF permeate, a clear amber-colored liquid, while retaining >85% (and usually greater than 90%) of the volatile solids in the concentrate, which is then digested. This can be used to reduce hauling to an offsite digester or improve performance at a single site. Interested in learning more? Please contact us today to learn more about pilot testing availability.

Digested Organics uses Forward Osmosis to Tackle PFAS in Landfill Leachate

You’ve probably heard about the class of “forever chemicals” called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Not surprisingly, landfill leachate often contains PFAS compounds and poses a significant treatment challenge for municipal wastewater treatment plants. Leachate is also very dark, which can reduce the efficiency of ultraviolet disinfection (measured as UV transmittance at 254 nm). Digested Organics uses its unique Two-Step Reverse Osmosis (TSRO) process to extract clean water from leachate that has non-detectable levels of PFAS and >99% UVT at 254 nm. Typically we remove >85% of the leachate as clean water, though recoveries can reach as high as 95%. By discharging the clean water to a sewer or nearby waterway (under a permit), landfills can recognize dramatic savings in disposal costs and PFAS can be contained to the landfill, where it belongs.

Please contact Rob Evans at 517-673-3853 and robertevans@nanr.net to learn more about our filtration solutions for landfills. North American Natural Resources (NANR) is an experienced owner/operator of landfill gas to energy systems and has formed Leachate Filtration Solutions to help landfill operators tackle leachate challenges.

European Customer to Receive our First Containerized Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor (aMBR)

The sustainable management of animal manure in Europe is often even more challenging than it is here in the United States due to limited land base and stringent requirements for nitrogen and phosphorus application. Our engineering team has developed a containerized Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor (aMBR) for treating screened dairy and pig manure. We are currently fabricating the first unit for a site in Europe where it will process dairy manure and demonstrate how this integrated digester and membrane treatment system can cost-effectively produce biogas and manage effluent nutrient composition. For smaller projects, a plug-and-play ready filtration solution in a container is often a good option that minimizes onsite installation and commissioning challenges. Please contact us today to size a system for your application.