The Innovation Pavilion at WEFTEC, which takes place in Chicago from 30 September to 4 October, boasts a truly international line-up for 2017. Companies from New Zealand, Denmark, Finland and Turkey are among those sharing some of the most promising technologies in the water industry.

Technology market intelligence specialist BlueTech Research has selected seven of the companies participating in the 6th Innovation Pavilion. The US Water Environment Federation (WEF) has partnered BlueTech and Imagine H2O to create a unique programme of events for entrepreneurs, investors, regulators, business leaders, scientists and engineers in the utility and industrial sectors. 

Fantastic opportunity

Paul O’Callaghan, chief executive of BlueTech Research said, “The Innovation Pavilion is a fantastic opportunity to find out more about some of the most exciting innovation globally. BlueTech’s expert analysts have identified enhanced separation technologies, sustainable water and wastewater treatment processes and some of the most advanced sensor technologies in the world.

“Innovation is crucial to delivering the water and wastewater services needed by growing populations in a water constrained world. As well as hosting cutting-edge technologies, the Innovation Pavilion also serves as a platform for discussions around their implementation.”

Innovative companies

The Pavilion features 14 early and growth stage companies selected by BlueTech Research, Imagine H2O and the WEF Innovative Technology Awards. The BlueTech Innovation Pavilion companies are:

  • Aquafortus, from New Zealand, which has invented an osmotic process that can be used for driving a forward osmosis process.
  • Genifuel, headquartered in Utah, USA, which has a hydrothermal system which achieves very fast conversion of the organic content of wet biomass.
  • Hyrec, a Turkish company, which has a membrane separation technology that can concentrate solutions to very high levels without using high pressure or heat.
  • Nanonord from Denmark which has developed the world’s first nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) online sensor for measuring nitrate, nitrite, ammonium, and other substances, in sewage sludge.
  • RealTech based in Canada, which has developed an optical sensor platform which addresses the challenges of volatile light sources in spectrometry.
  • Sofi Filtration, a Finnish company with a self-cleaning microfiltration technology
  • St Cloud Mining from New Mexico, USA, which has developed a zeolite water treatment media with high selectivity for ammonia.

There will be daily tours of the Pavilion and nightly drinks receptions where visitors can meet and network with the Pavilion companies.

Research outputs

The Pavilion will host a session with Paul O’Callaghan, sharing learnings from research carried out by BlueTech’s expert analysts. Two of the most recent reports are on technologies for making plastic from wastewater and the surge in the ballast water treatment market.

A Breakfast Briefing on Tuesday 3 October will feature a presentation from BlueTech TAG Expert Jim Hotchkies on trends in industrial water. The event is sponsored by True North Venture Partners and places are limited.

Steve Gluck, a member of BlueTech’s Technology Assessment Group (TAG), is also participating in a panel, “No Water, No Energy, No Food: Managing the Nexus”. The presentation takes place on Monday 2 October at 10.30am in Room N426b.  Participating companies include Coca Cola, Shell, Southwestern Energy, The Water Council and GE.

WEFTEC is North America’s largest water expo and is attended by over 20,000 of the world’s leading water experts. For more information, please visit www.weftec.org.