by Brianna Crandall — April 22, 2019 — Dynamic Water Technologies reportedly saved thousands of gallons of water and cut operating costs at a federal building in Georgia as part of a government study to find alternative technologies to conserve energy and water. The resulting report recommends governmentwide adoption of the company’s electrochemical process water treatment technology, says the company.
Electrochemical technology for cooling towers
Dynamic Water Technologies is a Scottsdale-based company that provides electrochemical treatment of process water allowing businesses to use the water for 50-100 percent more cycles than traditional chemical-based approaches. Dynamic Water uses electrolysis to treat the water and release it back into cooling towers onsite without using acids or inhibitors and only a minimal amount of bleach.
Dynamic Water Technologies’ electrochemical water-treatment technology. Shown: the green-colored reactors that balance the water before it enters the chillers. Image courtesy DWT
End users report significant savings in operational costs as a result of not using acids and inhibitors, not paying for disposal of contaminated water, using less energy than other treatment methods, and reducing water usage between 10 and 40 percent in cooling systems.
Federal study
In late 2018, the General Services Administration (GSA) released a report based on a multi-month study at the 242,000-square-foot Juliette Gordon Low Federal Building in Savannah, Georgia. The building has two cooling towers that used traditional chemical water treatment for the cooling water circulating through the two chiller condensers.
The report notes:
Cooling tower-related water consumption is one of largest potable water loads within buildings in the United States, with substantial building water use associated with heating and cooling. Reducing water consumption is a priority. … These factors have brought about the investigation of cost-effective opportunities to reduce water use, such as alternative water treatment technologies for cooling towers.
The study took place from July to October in 2017. Researchers found that the system effectively treated the water without the expense of added chemicals and reduced water use by 32 percent.
Mike Boyko, chief executive officer for the Scottsdale-based Dynamic Water Technologies, was not surprised by the results. He’s been working to convince businesses and government agencies for the past four years since founding the company about the incredible savings in water that DWT can help realize.
Boyko stated:
Participating in this government study is just another step toward showing how much more US businesses can be doing to conserve water. We are thrilled with the results and the GSA’s recommendation that our systems be used at additional governmental facilities.
The US Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) assessed Dynamic Water’s system during the study. The study was to determine whether the electrochemical process would:
- Save water and water/sewer costs by reducing the amount of blowdown required, allowing the system to operate at higher cycles of concentration;
- Eliminate the need for water treatment chemicals for scale, corrosion and biological growth;
- Increase chiller efficiency by preventing scaling and removing some of the existing scale, which improves heat transfer; and
- Maintain very low corrosion rates.
In all instances, Dynamic Water’s system was said to meet or exceed expectations. Boyko said the results are similar at installations throughout the Southwest and worldwide that have installed and are using the electrochemical system to treat industrial process water.
In 2018, Dynamic Water Technologies was a finalist for the Small Business Innovator of the Year Award presented annually by the Arizona Technology Council. Clients worldwide include NASA, Roche Molecular Systems, Los Angeles City Hall, Transwestern commercial real estate company and Gilead Sciences, Inc.
For more information about Dynamic Water Technologies’ Universal Environmental Technology (UET), visit the company’s website. To view an infographic with the results of the federal study, called Electrochemical Water Treatment for Cooling Towers, visit the GSA website.
