Aquanovation Markets
Aquanovation customers are typically original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) looking for best in class suppliers of base technologies and components. We work with purification and alternative energy equipment companies whose portfolios of products are targeted to end-users looking for solutions to chemical process improvements, environmental challenges and/or energy storage.
Applications Include:
Metals Extraction (Lithium) - EV Battery
Demand for lithium is skyrocketing, mainly in the automotive market for EV batteries. Extraction of lithium from variety of sources is becoming difficult due to the scale-up for increased demand.
Standard ion exchange membranes from competitors have been used for this application with limited success. Aquanovation has a patented monovalent ion selective membrane that is operationally more efficient, rugged in construction, pH tolerant and is 10X more ion selective than any other membranes in the market.
Agricultural Water - Irrigation, Reuse and Recycle
In many agriculture areas of the US such as California there is abundant amount of brackish water that cannot be used for irrigation due to high salinity levels. Reverse Osmosis treatment is not desirable for this application because it either produces water that is too “pure” lacking any minerals necessary for crops or having undesirable sodium absorption ratio (SAR).
Alternative Energy Technologies - Redox Flow Battery
The redox flow battery (copper/zinc or vanadium) is a promising and commercially available technology that possesses advantageous features for stationary energy storage. A key component of the flow battery in terms of cost and system efficiency is the membrane.
Water Purification
Seawater desalination and high salinity industrial water
Ion exchange membranes have been used in Electrodialysis (ED) and Electrodialysis Reversal (EDR) products for the treatment of water since the 1960’s. The opportunity to use the Singapore seawater desalination project to create a large installation and positive reputation will help immensely in validating the Aquanovation products in the global desalination market. Aquanovation will also leverage the newer; better performance, less expensive licensed products to convert current ED/EDR “stack” suppliers to our ion- exchange membrane for new equipment, as well as replacement membranes for an estimated install base of >5,000 systems. The Aquanovation membrane is a direct replacement for the installed base.
- Sustainable: A 50-million-gallon Reverse Osmosis (RO) seawater desalination (Example Carlsbad, CA) emits 97,165 metric tons of CO2 per year. Aquanovation ED/EDR about half (50,00 metric tons/year).