Mobile MyCelx Filtration Unit for Diesel Fuel / Oil Spills Treatment

The Background

Fieldale Farms Corporation in Baldwin, GA raises and delivers chickens for the poultry processing industry in North Georgia. They operate a large fleet of tractor trailer vehicles on the many winding mountain roads in the area.

The Problem

Occasionally these vehicles are involved in accidents. In some of these accidents fuels and oils are spilled. They invariably find their way into a stream or creek at the accident site. Fieldale Farms has a first response capability that they dispatch to contain and clean up the oils and fuel. In the past this was limited to hard booms and absorbent booms to cleanup the spill and pumps to pick up the water/fuel behind the hard booms and pump it into tanker trucks to be hauled away. The goal was to find a treatment system that would remove the oils and fuel from the water so the water could be discharged on site. The treatment system had to have a small footprint, have a high capacity for oils and fuel and be very mobile.

The Solution

In the Spring of 2002, the Director of Field Operations for Fieldale Farms Corporation came to MyCelx Technologies for a demonstration of our technology. At the conclusion of the demonstration he was ready to place his order for two MyCelx MX-12s. He wanted to pump up to 180 gallons per minute and have sufficient hydrocarbon capacity so he did not have to stop to replace cartridges in the midst of a clean-up operation. In the final configuration, two bag filters were installed in parallel followed by two MX-12s installed in series. The bag filters were installed in parallel because suspended solids are high in this application. One bag filter unit is on-line; the second unit is on stand-by.When pressures build up to a critical level, valves are opened and closed to bring the stand-by unit on line. The bag in the first unit is replaced and this unit goes on stand-by.The MX-12s are operated in series so hydrocarbons can supersaturate the cartridges in the lead unit before there is breakthrough in the lag unit. It also provides a margin of safety in the event slugs of oil/fuel overwhelm the cartridges in the lead unit. This set-up keeps the clean-up operation moving along with little interruption. The entire system fits on small high bed Army surplus trailer that is ideal for off-road spill response.

The Results

During a recent spill involving diesel fuel/oil, the regulators were very impressed with the performance. The operator took samples of the effluent in a polystyrene cup. There was no visible sheen, no aromatic diesel smell and the cup did not dissolve.

Fieldale Farms Corporation also operates diesel and gasoline truck stands for their fleet.Rainwater mixed with diesel and gasoline is captured in the secondary containment. The mobile treatment system is periodically brought to the sites where they pump this “cocktail” through the system and discharge the clean water on the ground.