Subsequent testing was done with a "post treatment" system that disinfected and filtered the effluent to drinking water quality.

Perchlorate Remediation

A new type of groundwater contamination has been identified. This material is perchlorate, an ion produced by the manufacture of ammonium perchlorate for solid rocket engine oxidizer. In recent years it has been discovered in groundwater in several southwestern states, at concentration levels substantially higher than environmental standards.

EcoMat is currently demonstrating our technology for destroying the perchlorate, at a Department of Defense installation in Southern California. This effort, as a subcontract to Earth Tech, is possible because the same bacteria that remove oxygen from nitrate, can remove oxygen from perchlorate, turning it into a harmless chloride.

EcoMat built a portable unit for this demonstration project, almost identical to the denitrification system supplied to the John G. Shedd Aquarium.

The photo of the buildings shows the building where they mixed their rocket fuel (the building is labelled 4283). On its right are two "Baker Tanks" which hold the water to be perchlorate remediated. Just in front of the Baker Tanks is the "drop box" in which EcoMat's remediation system is housed.

This photo shows the simple, straightforward system which is identical to EcoMat's denitrification systems. On the right, the green tank is the deaeration reactor. On the left is the Hall reactor in which oxygen is removed from the perchlorate. This system was built in EcoMat's facility and was delivered by truck to Southern California. Installation and hook up took about two days.