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11:25 am, November 5, 2008
University spinout Arvia wins water excellence award
By Claire Shoesmith
University of Manchester spinout Arvia Technology has won an award for its water treatment process, a system which allows the continuous removal and destruction of toxic and non-biodegradable pollutants in water.
The company, which has only been going since the start of the year, scooped the Water Award in the Institution of Chemical Engineers’ awards for innovation and excellence 2008. The accolade is given for particular attention to water use, clean-up and re-use, with emphasis on the impact on environment, including resource use, recycling and water reduction.
Company founder Nigel Brown said: “The Arvia process offers a significant breakthrough in truly cost-effective removal of organic micro pollutants. It offers a sustainable replacement for activated carbon, which is traditionally used for this process.
“The system’s ability to increase reuse and recycling of water has global potential where water is an increasingly scarce resource. Our unique process enables cost-reductions across a wide range of industries.”
The Arvia process relies on an adsorbent material called nyex and operates without any mechanical moving parts. Nyex is electrically reactivated for continuous re-use and all pollutants are destroyed, leaving no secondary waste requiring further treatment
As reported in this week’s edition of Crain’s, Arvia Technology recently won £800,000 of new investment from a mixture of private individuals, the Liverpool Seed Fund and the UMIP Premier Fund, a multi-million pound fund dedicated to the commercialisation of businesses coming out of The University of Manchester.
The company has created a prototype capable of cleaning 200 tonnes of water a day and is now seeking buyers in order to expand the product, which has so far cost more than £650,000 to develop.
Comments?cshoesmith@crain.com
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