Emissions Reduction Alberta announces $1.8M in funding to H2nanO to scale low-energy water reuse and desalination.
H2nanO Receives New ERA Funding to Scale Low-Energy Mine Water Reuse
Emissions Reduction Alberta has announced the Tailings Technology Challenge funded projects, including $1,800,000 to H2nanO’s $3,600,000 project to scale-up demonstration of our Stratus desalination and water reuse technology in Canada’s oil sands. H2nanO’s project joins Canadian Natural Resources, Imperial Oil, Suncor Energy, Conetec Investigations, and NAIT towards accelerating the reduction of tailings and mine water in oil sands operations.
H2nanO and industry partners in oil sands mining will demonstrate a new approach to desalination and reuse for process water, and groundwater brines to reduce the storage requirements for these waters and offset freshwater use intensity. The Stratus technology will provide a more energy-efficient reuse solution by using natural or surplus plant heat as an alternative to conventional desalination in a high-efficiency multi-effect distillation technology. The high quality water product could have benefits for reuse in the plant and as a tool in eventual release and remediation of mine operations.
With Stratus, H2nanO expands its offerings to oil sands miners and industrial water management at large to now include salinity management, particularly for high-concentration and high-total-recovery applications. Our goal is to provide a sustainable and energy-efficient process towards minimum and zero liquid discharge targets in industry, while also offsetting the capital cost and carbon intensity of expanded water impoundment and accumulation of new freshwater intake.
The project will create new, high-skilled green jobs at H2nanO and in the energy sector while advancing the engineering and science of passive water treatment towards a key environmental priority in Alberta. The knowledge from the project will help to inform future strategies for water management in oil sands operations, as well as provide H2nanO a strong demonstration of Stratus in industry to serve the world abroad
