Educational Articles

Sustainability Spotlight for Wastewater Landfill Sludge Reduction Project Project Summary: Bond Water Technologies was approached by a large national food processing plant to help manage their wastewater sludge reduction plan. The plant estimates a daily sludge haul of 3,000 gallons (3% solids) from its wastewater treatment process, incurring $500K in sludge hauling costs alone in 2023. The project aims to reduce daily sludge hauls, landfill additions, and associated carbon emissions from trucking transportation. Project Implementation Steps: Evaluation of Current Process and Investigation: Assessed the existing process, which includes an EQ tank (250K) feeding centrifuges before chemical treatment to remove solids, with an average 35% solids rendered into feed for livestock. Initiated an investigation into the possibility of sending sludge generated from the treatment process to the centrifuges for removal via rendering, aiming to eliminate landfill disposal and reduce transportation mileage. Evaluation of Chemical Treatments: Identified GRAS approved chemistries for coagulant and polymer treatment to enable rendering of treated sludge.  Development of Chemical Feed System: Created an automatic chemical feed system to adjust with varying strengths of incoming wastewater streams, preventing under and overfeeding of chemistry. Utilized a TSS monitoring feed system to base feed all chemistry at the lowest end of the feed range, automatically adjusting as incoming TSS increased. Installation of Sludge Recirculation Pump: Installed a sludge recirculation pump and feed pump to mix the sludge tank and provide a consistent percent solids feed to the centrifuges. Automatic Adjustment of Polymer Feed: Addressed variations in percent solids from the sludge tank due to decanting by automatically adjusting polymer feed for thickening. Added an additional TSS probe to the centrate tank of the centrifuges connected with the variable-speed polymer feed system to automatically adjust polymer feed to varying conditions and target a solids capture rate. Project Outcomes: The facility earned “The Most Improved Industrial Pre-Treatment Award”. Successfully implemented feeding sludge to the centrifuges, resulting in significant achievements: Reduced sludge hauls from daily to monthly, with an estimated monthly landfill reduction of 87,000 gallons. Projected monthly mileage reduction in trucking transportation of 3,000 miles, leading to an associated CO2 reduction of 5,610 pounds per month. References: Greenhouse Gas Emissions from a Typical Passenger Vehicle: Questions and Answers – Fact Sheet (EPA-420-F-23-014, June 2023)

The Possible Connection Between COVID-19 Shutdowns and Increased Risk of Legionnaires' Disease In August, the Alliance to Prevent Legionnaires' Disease held a virtual conference to identify a possible connection between COVID-19-related shutdowns and increased risk of Legionnaires' disease. The leading cause of reported waterborne disease in the United States, the Legionella bacteria accounts for about 60% of outbreaks over the last 10 years. In 2018, almost 10,000 cases of Legionnaires’ were reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) -- the highest rate ever seen in the U.S. -- though some scientists believe this could be a vast underestimate, claiming that the annual case count could be closer to 70,000. Sadly, 10% of people who get Legionnaires’ disease die from the infection. However, the federal government is reporting an almost 50% decline in cases this year despite the fact that COVID-related shutdowns are likely to increase the risk of Legionella contamination. Why Might the COVID-19 Pandemic Increase the Risk of Legionella Contamination? Since the 1976 Philadelphia Legionnaires Convention legionellosis outbreak, our understanding of the sources and risks of the Legionella bacteria has expanded. We know that the bacteria can multiply in stagnant water. And as building water systems resume operation following the COVID-19 shutdowns -- during which water usage was reduced or ceased -- contamination is more likely. In other words, disruptions to normal water usage patterns result in stagnant water with diminished disinfectant levels and legionella testing, allowing bacteria to grow unnoticed. Furthermore, national and global attention has been hyper-focused on the COVID-19 pandemic -- for good reason -- but the Alliance warns that this targeted attention could be overshadowing Legionnaires' cases, particularly because the symptoms can be so similar. In fact, they fear that the focus on COVID-19 could be exacerbating the underreporting of Legionnaires’ and potentially leading to misdiagnoses. Says Brad Considine, Director of Strategic Initiatives for the Alliance, "Given the historical trends and increased risks posed by COVID-19 shutdowns and recent re-openings, we are confident Legionnaires' cases are on the rise this year." Legionella Testing to Stop the Spread As facilities open back up, it's critical that testing and cleaning are completed immediately and thoroughly. Legionella bacteria tend to thrive primarily in warm, wet environments such as plumbing systems and cooling towers. While some states and municipalities do have guidelines for monitoring Legionella, only New York has passed legislation in an attempt to prevent Legionella. At this time, there are no other federal or state regulations that mandate routine monitoring. We recommend that industrial facilities implement a Legionella control and management program, including routine cooling tower cleaning. For more information on how you can minimize Legionella growth in your building water systems and prevent infection, give us a call today. We have the commercial and industrial water treatment solutions you need to keep your business safe and successful.

Seasonal Cooling Tower Start-Up StepsThis is the time of year that seasonal HVAC cooling towers are put back into service. It is very important that you follow certain cooling tower start-up steps with best practices and that your water treatment service provider is made aware of start-up timing.One of the primary goals for effective water treatment is to maintain clean heat transfer equipment, including your cooling tower and all water contact surfaces. While your cooling tower sits dormant for several months over the winter, it is exposed to many conditions or contaminants that can have negative impacts on four important areas:Deposition of both organic and inorganic materials which effect heat transfer and potentially reduces flow.Corrosion leading to improper heat rejection and system efficiency loss. Ultimately, corrosion is the main reason towers are replaced.Microbiological concerns for prevention of biofilm formation particularly on condenser tubes impacting short-term heat transfer as well as long-term inhibition of microbial-induced corrosion.Legionella bacteria control and eliminating risks of disease associated with tower operation.It is therefore imperative that a preventive course of action be made in advance of initial start-up of cooling towers.During cooling tower start-up, preliminary inspections of critical heat transfer surfaces and other susceptible areas should be completed. In some states […]

Bond’s District Manager for Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, John Dunford, Gives Presentation to The North Carolina Hospital Group on Water Management Plans John Dunford with Bond Water Technologies gave a presentation to the NCHEA District IV for their summer meeting in Wilmington, NC in July.  The presentation centered around the seven required components for creating Water Management Plans associated with the ASHRAE 188-2015 standard.  The biggest takeaway from the presentation was to have a well documented plan involving a team, control points, monitoring, measuring,  action levels and evaluating. If you would like to download the presentation you can click on the button below. You can also get in touch with John Dunford directly by emailing him at jdunford@bondwater.com or you can call John at (804) 912-3895.  Mr. Dunford is a Certified Water Technologist (CWT) and is the District Manager for Bond Water Technologies covering Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Contact us today to learn more about water management for Legionella mitigation. […]