University Researchers Unveil Lowest Cost - Highest Impact Clean Water Technology

REDONDO BEACH, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 31, 2015

BioLargo, Inc. (BLGO) announced that on Monday, August 17th, researchers at the University of Alberta held a confidential technical conference where they demonstrated the BioLargo AOS Filter operating live in real time to an audience of about 30 individuals representing interested stakeholder groups, ranging from; science, research, academia, industry, engineering, federal and municipal funding agencies, investment professionals and a leading global philanthropic organization. University researchers also presented attendees with impressive results that continued to repeat in approximately 100 studies. 

The performance data continues to validate the company's technical claims associated with the AOS Filter. These technical claims; less than 1/20th the cost of the nearest technical competitor, greater than 100 times the efficacy (disinfection) and greater than 10 times faster than any technical competitor, support the AOS Filter's important role and high value in just about every segment of the global water industry estimated at $350 Billion annually.

Independent researchers at the University of Alberta refer to the AOS Filter's disinfection rates of performance as "unprecedented". The AOS Filter combines iodine, water filter materials and electrolysis within a water filter device, generating extremely high oxidation potential in order to eliminate, soluble organic contaminants that are commonly found in many types of contaminated water. It has been shown to achieve extremely high rates of disinfection, eliminating infectious biological pathogens like Salmonella, Listeria and E.coli in water. The AOS Filter also eliminates a broad spectrum of contaminants including acids, solvents, sulfurs, oil and gas by-products, and pharmaceutical by-products that are commonly found in contaminated water.

Richard Smith, President of BioLargo Water commented, "We have assembled an extraordinary team of professional researchers and as one might imagine, the interest and excitement in our technology is expanding rapidly. We have a number of new collaborations and additional research and pilot funding commitments to announce soon. We are exceedingly grateful for the continued financial support from various federal, provincial and industrial sponsors."

With results that are strikingly advanced over current water treatment technology and a recent showcase to important players in industry and government, it appears BioLargo's path to commercialization could be short and likely quite broad. The AOS Filter is beyond a concept and beyond proof of concept. It is already patented and has been built and its design is now ready for operation and production for industrial applications like food processing. Management reports that all the components to manufacture the filter are readily available. A first look at the AOS Filter is available on BioLargo's website.

The data reported by the company indicates that both the expected capital cost and the operating costs are a fraction of competing technologies. The most important remaining step is calculating the engineering to construct the AOS Filter for a specific purpose and flow rate to meet specific needs for large-scale industrial customers. Smaller units can be produced in mass-scale for basic targets like drinking water for the consumer markets or emerging nations. The AOS Filter can be built in an unlimited number of configurations, including a scaled-up version for large-scale needs, but for now, the company reports that it can be stacked in series or parallel or both to meet a variety of flow and performance requirements.

With extremely high performance in removing contaminants now proven, its exceptionally "Low Cost" will be the key factor that will drive demand for the AOS Filter. The company reports a breakthrough in cost that is less than 1/20th of the closest competing technology. There are literally dozens of effective technologies to decontaminate water, however, not one of them is cost-effective enough to solve the massive clean water shortage problem, or the challenges of dealing with difficult contaminants.

Because reduced cost will translate favorably to bottom line profits of AOS Filter users, it should not be long before we see announcements of significant licensing deals or strategic alliances for the AOS Technology that is positioned to impact every segment of water treatment. BioLargo continues advancing its technology with more than 10 science and engineering research grants from various Canadian agencies and those resources continue to expand.

BioLargo has not made any announcements yet about definitive go to market partnerships, but after a showcase of the kind described by the company in their press release, one would expect that they are already in discussions with industry partners for licensing the technology for specific purposes. 

The growing problem of global drought and pollution are challenging the world's supply of affordable clean water for consumption, agriculture and industry and are driving up the price of clean water fast not to mention reducing traditional supplies. One of the many sectors feeling the squeeze is the oil & gas industry where shortages of available clean water for fracking and the cost of treating or disposing of the contaminated "produced water" are increasingly threatening the bottom line of oil producers as the price of oil continues to fall. Lower oil prices increase the need for producers to cut costs as profits begin to erode and even disappear for many. In an extremely competitive landscape where slowing world economies coupled with an oversupply of oil point to a protracted downturn for oil prices, the AOS Filter is expected to be in high demand.

Thousands of companies globally could benefit from the AOS Filter, but three are provided here to illustrate how they could benefit.

Nuverra Environmental Solutions (NES) provides oil field services with environmental solutions for major exploration and production companies operating in the oil and gas basins. If Nuverra can offer their customers significant savings for water recycling/reuse and treatment and disposal, they can gain substantial new business over their competitors. The AOS Filter could be of high value to Nuverra.

Penn Virginia Corp (PVA) is an independent oil and gas company engaged in the development, exploration and production of natural gas and oil in various onshore regions, including Texas, and the Mid-Continent. Their operations include some conventional drilling but also include a substantial amount of fracking where requirements for clean water are high and where large amounts of water must be treated and disposed. Adoption of the AOS Filter to manage their water needs could significantly reduce costs and thereby increase bottom line profits.

Another example where the AOS Filter could increase profits is Consolidated Water Co. Ltd (CWCO) that designs, builds, operates, and in some cases finances seawater reverse osmosis, SWRO, desalination plants and water distribution systems in several Caribbean countries where the supply of drinking water is scarce and the use of SWRO is economically feasible. Consolidated Water could benefit immensely by using the AOS Filter to reduce biofilm accumulation on RO filters. Biofilm fouling is responsible for shortening RO filter lives and for greatly increasing the amount of energy required to push the water through the filter. The AOS Filter would greatly reduce both operating costs and capital costs for Consolidated Water and would also serve to remove pathogens and contaminants providing safer and healthier water for its users.

Goldman Sachs has called water the next petroleum, https://churchmice253.wordpress.com/2015/07/06/goldman-sachs-water-is-still-the-next-petroleum/ and the water treatment industry a 425 billion dollar business and growing fast.

Dennis P. Calvert, President & CEO of BioLargo commented, "The numerous scientific studies at the University of Alberta have established that BioLargo has developed the world's highest impact, lowest cost, fastest acting water technology for disinfection and decontamination of wastewater from any source. Our Chief Technology Officer really deserves the credit here for staying one step ahead of the innovation curve and being able to recruit such a talented team of scientists to advance his work. This is a very exciting time for BioLargo as we prepare to impact the world in a positive way."

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