Effective Zebra Mussel Control for Utilities and Industrial Facilities

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Preventing macro fouling

Zebra and quagga mussels spread from the Great Lakes into the water bodies of central and eastern North America fouling utility, industrial and municipal intake structures and piping networks. Unchecked they can decrease or obstruct flow, interrupt key processes, reduce heat transfer, cause outages and impair the response of the emergency systems for fire or equipment safety.

Users of raw lake water need effective, environmentally friendly control measures aimed at preventing mussel colonization of water systems. Industries such as automotive, manufacturing, and pulp and paper also want assurance that all unwanted particles are removed from process water and, to ensure that all regulations for the removal of particulates are met.

Effective, environmentally friendly solution

Kinectrics’ Ever-Clear™ Filtration System is an effective, environmentally friendly alternative to remove mussels from flowing water systems at power plant intakes. The Ever-Clear™ Filter also provides an ideal system for filtration processes in many manufacturing process industries. The Kinectrics’ team can custom design Ever-Clear™ to meet specific mussel control and particulate filtration needs.

Kinectrics also offers a full range of research and development services, such as monitoring, instrumentation and water studies. Kinectrics’ comprehensive solutions save time, money and potentially costly delays often involved in dealing with multiple firms.

Kinectrics unique expertise

Since 1989, Kinectrics interdisciplinary team of biologists, chemists, physical scientists and engineers has been developing and advancing effective mussel control technologies. Kinectrics has helped set zebra mussel filtration standards. We established the 40 micron-size screen design most commonly used today.

Focused on infestation prevention as the best cure, Kinectrics’ innovative solutions include anti-fouling coatings, optimized chlorine applications, mechanical filtration, acoustical treatment, UV applications and thermal shock treatment.

Proven project success

Kinectrics’ mussel control techniques have already proven effective in over a decade of use in practical applications at several fossil and nuclear power plants.

Kinectrics specialized services

Contract research, or testing and evaluation:

• Bio-monitoring of raw water systems for mussels
• Monitoring of control system performance
• Design and implementation of control techniques
• Consultation on mussel biology, optimization of chlorine treatment, mechanical filtration, acoustical application, UV applications and anti-fouling coatings

Unique research facilities:

• Unique continuous once-through flow cell system
• Abundant natural supply of veliger and adult mussels
• Control of water velocity and residency times in each flow cell, making it possible to simulate the environments of mussels which infest raw water systems
• Automated control and monitoring instrumentation (temperature, pressure, velocity, chemical concentration, veliger density)
• Custom designed applications
• Transportable to your site

Zebra Mussel Biology

• Larval and adult biology
• Automated veliger counting
• Behavioural response to treatments and fluid dynamics
• Substrate preference

Physical control evaluation

• Anti-fouling coatings
• New filtration technologies
• Acoustical treatment
• UV and ionizing irradiation
• Electric shock
• Thermal shock

Chemical control evaluation

• Efficacy testing of novel molluscicides
• Optimization of chemical use
• Chlorine generation by electrolysis

For more information, contact:

Paul Patrick, 416.207.6000 x6277, paul.patrick@kinectrics.com

Luciano Gonzalez, 416.207.6000 x5876, luciano.gonzalez@kinectrics.com

Related links:

The Ever-Clear™ Filtration System Technical Profile

The Ever-Clear™ Filtration System for Ballast Water Treatment

Mussel Fouling Control