Heron Innovators Revolutionizes the Process of Liquid/Solid Separation for Highly Efficient Water and Wastewater Treatment

Suspended Air® Flotation produces a cleaner effluent and dryer skimmed solids while reducing operating costs and maintenance

Roseville, CA – Heron Innovators, a pioneer in water treatment technologies, is driving the industry forward with its advanced Suspended Air® Flotation (SAF®) system, setting new standards for efficiency and effectiveness in solid/liquid separation. SAF® has consistently demonstrated superior performance compared to conventional floatation separation techniques in treating water, wastewater, and landfill leachate.

Suspended Air® Flotation enhances separation efficiency, resulting in cleaner effluent and drier skimmed solids. Additionally, SAF® significantly reduces operating costs through lower energy consumption, decreased flocculant and coagulant usage, and reduced operator attention and maintenance requirements. Moreover, SAF® systems occupy a smaller footprint while increasing hydraulic flow capacity and solids loading capacity.

Heron Innovators has been building and installing Suspended Air® Flotation systems across the U.S., Mexico, and Canada for twenty-five years, for a wide range of municipal and industrial water and wastewater treatment applications. These SAF® systems have consistently outperformed traditional flotation methods, including Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF), Cavitation Air Flotation (CAF), Induced Air Flotation (IAF), Induced Gas Flotation (IGF), and traditional microbubble technologies. 

SAF® achieves this superior performance by utilizing charged microbubbles, known as aphrons, that do not dissolve. An aphron is a double-walled bubble, 7-25 µm in size, that will not coalesce and has a significantly greater surface area and longer lifespan than traditional DAF bubbles. Aphrons can possess either a cationic or anionic charge. This electrostatic affinity and the resulting surface tension advantage allow aphrons to effectively adhere to, attract, and encapsulate contaminant particles.

The technology has been installed at municipal treatment facilities to thicken solids from Waste Activated Sludge (WAS) and digesters, provide enhanced primary clarification, primary clarification with grit removal, secondary clarification with solids thickening, and algae removal from holding pond effluent. SAF® has been employed in reclamation projects from agricultural irrigation to replenishing surface and ground waters. 

SAF® is also effective in providing solid/liquid separation in the disposal of landfill leachate water. This process may incorporate lime softening to remove calcium, thereby reducing TDS dischargers by more than 50%.

Heron Innovators offers custom designed systems that are plumbed, wired, and tested with flotation and ancillary equipment all on a single skid. This plug-and-play design minimizes installation time and costs normally associated with field integration of pumps, pH control, chemical feed, and other associated equipment. 

SAF® systems are available in sizes ranging from 50 gallons per minute (gpm) to greater than 8,000 gpm. Smaller flows can be treated by batch processing. Skid-mounted systems are available with capacities from 50 gpm to 2,800 gpm. 

For more information about Heron Innovators and the SAF® system, visit www.heroninnovators.com.