Using pure oxygen to treat wastewater
Victoria’s Barwon Region Water Corporation (Barwon Water) is exploring the use of pure oxygen to treat water more efficiently at its Geelong Northern Water Plant and to reduce wastewater treatment plant emissions.
The Green Oxygen for Wastewater Treatment project, which will use oxygen produced as a by-product of electrolysis, has secured up to $3 million in funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
ARENA CEO Darren Miller said Barwon Water’s project will demonstrate how renewable hydrogen producers and wastewater treatment players can work together to decarbonise.
“This will highlight the application for green oxygen and enhance the commercial viability of renewable hydrogen, offering unique learnings in navigating the regulatory, technical and commercial aspects of oxygen offtake,” he said.
The first stage of the project will involve Barwon Water conducting a front-end engineering and design study to determine the technical and commercial feasibility of using pure oxygen captured from an electrolyser in its wastewater treatment process, which currently employs an oxygen-based aerobic treatment process.
Oxygen will be sourced from Viva Energy’s new hydrogen refuelling station at the nearby Viva Energy Hub, which is deploying a 2.5 megawatt electrolyser.
“At Barwon Water, we’re always looking for innovative solutions for the problems of today and tomorrow,” said Barwon Water Managing Director Shaun Cumming.
“We’re excited to explore the beneficial use of pure oxygen as a by-product of renewable hydrogen production at the Viva Energy Hub hydrogen refuelling station. It’s an exciting opportunity to reduce emissions from wastewater treatment.”
Viva Energy was approved for $34 million in ARENA funding in 2022 to develop, build and operate its refuelling station to support the uptake of hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) in heavy fleets.
“We look forward to building on the benefits of Viva Energy’s new service station project with this investment and sharing the potential benefits for wastewater treatment with the water sector,” Cumming said.
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