$2 million funding helps new wastewater treatment technology moves a step closer to commercialization

Orangeville, ON – Xogen Technologies has been awarded $2 million funding to design, build and demonstrate a pilot project for its wastewater treatment and renewable energy technology at the Water Pollution Control Plant in Orangeville. The funding is being providing by the federal agency Sustainable Development Technology Canada.

The company’s technology treats raw wastewater using an electrolytic process that eliminates biosolids while requiring a much smaller footprint than conventional treatment approaches, thereby lowering capital costs. As a byproduct, the process produces a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen gas that can be used to generate energy through combustion or a fuel cell — energy that can be sold back to the grid or re-used to help further reduce costs.

Design and construction of the pilot project is expected to be completed in 2010. Once operational, the pilot plant will divert a small portion of raw sewage through its reactor on a continuous flow basis in order to demonstrate its viability for municipal wastewater treatment. The treated wastewater will be returned to Orangeville’s Water Pollution Control Plant for ultimate discharge to the receiving stream. An objective third party will evaluate the results. With data obtained from the pilot, the company says it will be able to refine the technology for commercial use in both Canadian and international markets.

“This is a major step forward for our commercialization plans,” said Angella Hughes, Xogen’s CEO. “Our patented technology has huge potential both here and internationally to revolutionize the wastewater treatment industry. This pilot plant will help us take development to the next level and demonstrate the efficacy of the technology.”

The company says it has assembled a multi-disciplinary team of researchers and technology companies to assist with the design, build and testing of the pilot plant, including University of Toronto for research and product development, the Town of Orangeville as pilot plant host, Orangeville Hydro for electricity metering and monitoring, Linde Canada Limited for hydrogen oxygen gas handling, recovery and monetization and Newalta as channel partner.