Bion Environmental Technologies Inc. was issued a new patent that broadens its Ammonia Recovery System (ARS) claims to include industrial and municipal wastewater streams.

Bion’s ARS was developed to recover ammonia in livestock waste streams, with a focus on the discharge from an anaerobic digester (AD), where biogas is produced. Bion just optimized the ARS at its Fair Oaks facility for the final design process for full-scale animal waste systems. With this fifth patent, Bion’s IP now covers organic waste streams from industrial and municipal sources, as well. 

According to the American Biogas Council, the U.S. has more than 2,400 AD sites producing biogas today, with a development potential for 15,000 new sites. Bion intends to establish strategic partnerships to market the ARS as a standalone AD nitrogen-control solution in two sectors:

Industrial and municipal wastewater

AD is now used at 1,269 water resource recovery facilities in the U.S., with another 102 standalone systems that digest food waste. The American Biogas Council estimates an additional 8,600 sites with development potential. Germany, by comparison, has almost 10,000 operating AD sites. 

In the U.S., wastewater and AD digestate from industrial and municipal sources is already regulated for ammonia and nitrates; EPA recently proposed tougher standards for slaughter facilities. Bion believes ARS ammonia treatment costs will be competitive in these markets and that its unique premium fertilizer byproducts will create an advantage, especially with waste streams that are still considered "organic," like slaughter and food waste.  

Animal waste

There are 473 animal-waste digesters operating in the U.S. today, mostly on dairy operations. The council and USDA’s AgSTAR program estimate more than 8,000 additional sites with development potential. The ARS was designed specifically for this purpose: control ammonia from livestock waste and produce the highest value byproducts with it. Bion has already received an OMRI-listing (Organic Material Review Institute) for its initial fertilizer product and is preparing applications for several more.

Digestate from animal-waste AD has experienced the same reduced regulatory requirements as land applying raw manure. Recent trends in Michigan and California indicate they will treat animal-waste digestate as any industrial source, subject to groundwater permitting requirements. Bion believes its proven technology and value-added fertilizers will give it a significant competitive advantage in this evolving market.

Bill O’Neill, Bion’s CEO, said, “The timing of this patent couldn’t be better – it underscores the broad applications of our ammonia recovery technology. We’ve already seen results at Fair Oaks that demonstrate we can configure the ARS for the economics of industrial waste streams. It’s an opportunity that could both jumpstart and shorten our drive to commercialization and give us a stronger platform to launch our sustainable beef initiatives.”

Source: Bion Environmental Technologies Inc.