Welcome to Axine’s mid-year update! Our goal is to provide you with highlights of our newest projects and activities as we work with pharma manufacturers to deliver the highest standards for treating the most challenging wastewater as a service with guaranteed results.
Please contact us directly for more information. You can also download the materials from our recent webinar, “Driving to Zero in Pharma Manufacturing Wastewater“, which provides details on our electrochemical oxidation (EOx) technologies, applications, and case studies.
New Installation at a Pharma Plant in Puerto Rico – We recently installed a new turnkey wastewater treatment system at a formulation plant in Puerto Rico. The Axine system treats 25,000 gallons per week of CIP rinse water contaminated with an antimicrobial API from a new production line enabling the site to achieve Predicted No-Effect Concentration (PNEC) for the API in the receiving water. The system incorporates membrane pre-treatment (UF and RO) to concentrate the APIs in the RO reject. Our EOx technology treats the RO reject, oxidizing and destroying the APIs. The treated RO reject is then discharged to the sewer along with the RO permeate. Axine’s solution is provided under a multi-year Master Service Agreement (MSA) with this pharma customer. Click here to see the final treatment system being loaded onto the truck for shipping to the Puerto Rico site.
On-site Destruction of Antibiotics in Wastewater – We’re working with members of the AMR Industry Alliance to develop and deploy on-site treatment solutions to oxidize and destroy antibiotic APIs in wastewater without using toxic chemicals and without generating any solid or liquid waste. Our technology enables manufacturing sites to achieve PNEC of <1 ppb for antibiotic APIs in receiving waters to eliminate the risk of antimicrobial “hotspots” downstream of manufacturing plants. These are typically smaller volume, segmented first rinses at formulation and finish & fil plants. Where segmentation is impractical, we can treat the APIs in larger flows that require multiple unit processes (see below). Click here for more details on our API treatability results.
API Polishing Post-biological Treatment – Pharma sites with on-site biological treatment are increasingly seeking solutions for polishing APIs after bio-treatment to meet PNEC requirements for reuse, irrigation, or discharge. These are typically higher volume streams (100+ m3 per day) contaminated with multiple APIs at low concentrations where segmentation of CIP rinses is impractical. For these applications, our solutions may incorporate a membrane bioreactor (MBR) to improve biological performance, followed by RO concentration of the APIs and Axine’s EOx technology to destroy the APIs in the RO reject.
European Expansion – In the first half of 2021, we expanded operations to Europe where we are now working with pharma customers to develop wastewater treatment projects in Spain, Italy, Germany, and other locations. To support these projects, we are investing in both a dedicated, EU-based wastewater test facility and a dedicated EU field pilot with capabilities for membrane pre-treatment and EOx-based organics treatment. Contact Laurent Gendre, our Director of European Sales, for more information.
$16M Investment in Next-Gen Wastewater Treatment System – We recently launched a multimillion-dollar project to develop the next generation of our wastewater treatment technology. This project is supported by four of our pharma manufacturing partners and the Canadian government who is contributing a $6.2 million grant through Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC). The goal is to improve technical performance, efficiency, verification, and automation by combining new catalyst materials and hardware design with machine learning (ML) software and advanced data analytics. For pharma sites, this will reduce treatment costs and provide real-time, continuous monitoring and verification of treatment performance to ensure treatment goals are being achieved.
On-site Destruction of PFAS – Finally, we are adapting our EOx technology for the on-site destruction of PFAS, an emerging contaminant of concern. While PFAS is not typically found in pharma wastewater, this application demonstrates the versatility of our technology to break the C-F bond, which is among the most stable bonds in organic chemistry. We have successfully completed proof-of-concept testing to verify oxidation and destruction of PFAS compounds. We are now working with industrial end-users on a comprehensive test program to verify technical performance on a range of C4, C6, and C8 PFCAs and PFSAs. As PFAS regulations are implemented, we believe Axine’s EOx solutions will provide cost-effective, on-site destruction of PFAS and eliminate the need for off-site incineration or disposal via injection well. More updates to come soon!
We hope you found this helpful. Please let us know if you have any questions or project inquiries. You can also follow us on LinkedIn to stay up to date on our technology and project progress.