Progress report for
BKT Tomorrow Water Project
Achievement at a glance
5 years have passed since the registration of TWP on the UN SDGs platform. Various innovations have been achieved and new concepts has been introduced to the project. We define the first half a decade (2016-2020) of the project as TWP 1.0 where we mainly focused on unit technologies, and the second half (2021-2025) as TWP 2.0 where we will focus on innovating the digital transformations and also the perfection of those technologies. We envision the next period (2026-2030) to be TWP 3.0 where integration of our upcycling process shall upgrade our TWP to become more sustainable to the highest standards. Check out more about our declaration at https://www.tomorrowwater.com/twp2 .Our distinctive technology innovations can be summed up under 3 categories.
DOWNSTREAM
- Our last year’s demonstration plant of the innovative PROTEUS+ in Michigan, US, achieved up to 84% & 81% removal of TSS and BOD respectively in less than 20 min of treatment. When combined with our Anammox (AMX) technology, the integrated process provides treatment of TSS, BOD and TN in less than 2 hours.
UPSTREAM
- Our new focal point of the upstream process is co-digestion of other organic wastes in addition to sewage sludge. We can achieve not only the net zero status but also the net energy positive process by generating renewable energy. Our individual technologies for this integrated process are ready and our $12 million government-funded project for the standard model of the most efficient and stable biogas facilities is under construction and will be completed in April of this year.
DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
- Budget, time, professional knowledge and experience constraints have always been hurdles for progress for developing countries. BKT’s solutions, WAI-DESIGN (Design Automation) and WAI-OPERATION (Operational Automation) are almost complete, currently going through validation and industrialization.
Challenges faced in implementation
- The challenges of current TWP 2.0 can be divided into 2 categories, technological challenges and application ones, while seeking the right project and funding to demonstrate TWP in developing countries.- BKT is developing the innovative concept of combining the data center on the wastewater treatment plant (DOW). Data center is a fast-growing industry with urgent needs for it everywhere, in developing and developed countries. A Data center needs a stable supply of energy and water for cooling in addition to the right location to be able to provide data to those who needs it. That’s where a WWTP comes in handy. Conventional WWTPs are usually located in the heart of major metropolitan areas and those sites are perfect for the data centers, and they naturally come with a stable supply of water and green energy. Integrating TWP with this concept, a much smaller fully constructed underground PROTEUS+ can create the necessary space to build the data center, along with the upstream process satisfying the excessive energy needs of the data center. One of our current challenges is to find the most efficient solution for the cooling of the data center, which is an undertaking that is under discussion with various partners.
- Furthermore for TWP 3.0, continuing innovation in upcycling processes is made including our process that uses our COWTT and FMX technologies to extract keratin from hog hair and slaughterhouse waste. Such a process is getting more attention and recognition through numerous publications and presentations made last year.
- To leave no one behind in our TWP, we are continuously searching for ways to provide our solutions in a more economical way. WAI was one of them, and 3D printing is another solution we are investigating in order to reduce the construction cost and meet economically the global WASH needs.
Beneficiaries
Leave No One Behind
- Our holistic approach with TWP provides the value of UN SDGs #6 Water & Sanitiation by treating the wastewater which is the basic sanitation solution that everybody needs. With the bio-gas producing process, we provide #7 Affordable Clean Energy, and #9 Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure by the data center solution. During the whole process, by optimization and using renewable energy, we also contribute to #13 Climate Action. (Please refer to the attached picture for the summarization of this concept) TWP is naturally for developing nations, but it also benefits those in the developed world. No one is left behind!.
- To amplify, TWP is targeting not just the environmental needs, but the economical needs as well, especially for those in developing countries. What good is a WWTP to for clean water if they don’t have the energy to operate it? This is why we spent years in R&D for our upstream and upcycling processes to add more value in economic sense to our TWP. Our project has evolved and grown to encompass four of the UN SDGs goals, thereby meeting the urgent requirements of those in need. Consequently, almost as a bonus, we can proudly extend our TWP to those in developed nations for its effectiveness and high concept, leaving no one behind in a full way.
Actions
- R&D projects, internally funded and government funded projects are ongoing for various innovative solutions to improve our TWP. Oxygenic photo-granule (OPG) is one of them, also AMX projects for improving, optimizing, and expanding the solution, flow analysis projects for improvements and so on.- Lots of awards of recognition has been received just in the last year, such as;
: Selected as “Global Sustainable Leader 100” of The Association for Supporting the SDGs for the UN (ASD).
: Selected as one of the top group of “The Sustainable Development Goals Business Index (SDGBI)” of the UN
: Introduced by ASD at the “International Webinar on Green and Responsible Business Practices” as one of the best companies regarding the ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance)
: The paper summarizing the case study of the aforementioned PROTEUS+ demonstration project has been selected among the “Top 10 Papers by Technology Providers” at WEFTEC 2020 (https://www.weftec.org/globalassets/assets-weftec/weftec-now/2020/bluetech-conference-briefing_top-100-weftec-abstracts-2020.pdf ). Also check out the interview regarding the results. ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLqSgT7aLGM )
: Just last year, our AMX technology was awarded the 1st place at the 2020 Patent Technology Awards by the Korean Intellectual Patent Office (KIPO). Our papers have been selected and published at WEFTEC, Water Science & Technology, and Chemosphere. Not to mention getting certification from the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute (KEITI), as “New Excellent Technology” (NET).
: Our process, utilizing our COWTT and FMX technologies, to extract keratin from hog hair and slaughterhouse waste, is getting more and more recognition. Publications (Advance in Environmental Waste Management & Recycling) and many presentations (Green Chemistry & Engineering 2020, Online Summit- Recycling and Waste Management 2020, International Conference on Water Resource and Environment (WRE 2021)) have been made. Check out the published paper on our homepage.
(https://www.tomorrowwater.com/news/a-novel-thermal-hydrolysis-process-for-extraction-of-keratin-from-hog-hair-for-commercial-applications )