**3. Description of VoxSton**

The concept of the new industrial and communal sludge and water treatment called VoxSton consists of the following phases and devices:


4.Final phase might be filtering, e.g., sand filtering. OxTube Treatment is identified by measures to enhance filtering, e.g., iron and manganese removal, efficiency. Reaction gases can be removed by VoxFlot Flotation or by a separate gas remover.

The entire concept is presented in **Figure 2**. The devices can be installed according to an integrated treatment process principles. Number of pools, tanks and pumps can be reduced, and energy and chemicals saved. Microbe growth, smell and uncertain phenomena can be eliminated by speeding up the process lead time. Of course, the process quality and recycling will improve significantly.

Present processes can be improved by the pretreatment and the secondary treatment that could be similar to the concept in **Figure 2**. These kinds of retrofits have been completed in present wastewater treatment and water intake facilities even without additional pumps and energy consumption. The secondary treatment from a sediment pool or from any other still water vessel requires normally an additional pump.

#### **3.1 SaoxFuge centrifugal separator**

Separation efficiency of SaoxFuge is based on centrifugal force and sediment effect that depends on the liquid viscosity and the specific gravity difference. The liquid flows a spiral path among the SaoxFuge pipe and a strong centrifugal force is created. The centrifugal acceleration depends on the flow speed and curve radius; it could be up to 1000 G. The liquid flow in the SaoxFuge can be pressurized up to 10 bar that makes the flow smoother, and reasonable high flow speed without turbulences is possible. The liquid flow turns to a spinning mode which is compensated by a counter vortex flow in SaoxFuge intake. The SaoxFuge Separator is presented in **Figure 3**.

#### **Figure 2.**

*Conceptual illustration of VoxSton process water treatment. In the most cases the process water can be treated from process outlet to finish continuously or daily basis without equalization and precipitation in terms of hours.*

**Figure 3.**

*SaoxFuge DN100 centrifugal separator is simple and reliable, no moving parts. Separation is a continuous and even process.*

#### **3.2 OxTube water treatment and bubble generation**

A new hermetic water treatment called OxTube Integrated Clarification and some of its applications are presented briefly here. There are many ways and combinations to apply this new water treatment technology. In order to understand the OxTube phenomena from industrial water clarification point of view the basic principles and some related examples are presented in this context.

OxTube treats the water in hermetic flowing condition. It separates soluble ingredients from the water, splits molecular and ionic structures, activates molecules, and clarifies the water. These treatment functions happen within a second or less in its seamless process of the hermetic tube condition. OxTube sucks air in its nozzle zone, generates bubbles and mixes them evenly in the water to be treated. The other gases and chemicals can be mixed evenly with the water flow in the nozzle zone. The meeting or collision probability of the molecules, particles and bubbles is high. Desirable chemical reactions follow immediately and they are well controlled in the hermetic condition. Compressed air can be fed into the nozzle or after, if more bubbles are needed.

The principle of OxTube water treatment is presented in **Figure 4** with a functional prototype visually. The entire clarification process is very well controlled due to its hermetic procedure. Its foam generation efficiency in flotation is illustrated in **Figure 5** in raw water intake from a lake to industrial processes. **Figure 8** shows visible bubble generation, biomass split and flotation in a lake refreshing which is similar to purification of industrial waters. Measured aeration and oxygenation efficiency is presented in **Figure 6**.

OxTube efficiency on separation of soluble ingredients, molecular activation and clarification is shown visibly with Swiss Alpen tap water in **Figure 7**. Separation and activation can be illustrated by OxTube treatment without air suction, and the integrated clarification within a second with air suction left and right, respectively.

#### **Figure 4.**

*OxTube water treatment process illustrated visually with air suction. The seamless process of separation with bubbles, activation, and clarification is performed within a second. The water is all the way an even mixture of small air bubbles, water and separated substances with air suction (upper picture). Collision probability of molecules, particles and bubbles is extreme high.*

#### **Figure 5.**

*Result of the efficient reaction of OxTube aerated lake water and related foam generation on the surface without additional flotation bubbles.*

The water temperature and pressure are kept exactly the same in this trial. Turbidity of 0.0 NTU has been achieved in clarifications.

OxTube water treatment technology has been applied successfully in removal of pharmaceutics, radon gas, calcium, manganese and iron from various water matrices, and disinfection with ozone of a hospital wastewater. More than 40 different pharmaceutical residues in total over 24 μg/l were removed 90 percent by OxTube Integrated

#### **Figure 6.**

*Gas dissolving performance of the OxTube DN100. O2 concentration of 100% was reached continuously within a second/Oulu university [4]. The highest O2 concentration achieved continuously in an OxTube DN100 installation 2016 is 55 mgO2/l at 2.1°C.*

#### **Figure 7.**

*Efficiency of OxTube water treatment with air; left Swiss Alpen tap water after the soluble ingredients separation and molecular activation, right the integrated clarification at the same condition. The separation, activation, clarification and replacement dissolving are performed seamlessly within a second in OxTube.*

Clarification within a second in one through run [5]. Radon removal from 57 to 8 Bq/L is achieved continuously in five installations of ground water intakes at Water Plants in The Philippines. Disinfection of a hospital wastewater with ozone is shown in **Table 2** [5, 6]. Viruses were reduced over 60 percent without any gas and chemicals feed. Microbe growth can be reduced or even eliminated by OxTube oxygenation with clean air. Further, microbes and particles can be removed by VoxFlot flotation.

OxTube can be installed in various positions in present treatment processes and facilities. Calcium removal was improved up to 100 percent and CO2 consumption reduced to 1/5 just by installing one OxTube in the present industrial water treatment facility of a can manufacturer.


**Table 2.**

 *High molecule and microbe collision probability can be shown by the disinfection tests completed at Savonia University of Applied Sciences in Kuopio Finland.*
