TABLE OF CONTENTS Pages Symposium 1 - the National Sea ...

Marine Biotech (Beverly, MA) 2 has filed for patent protection on the Cyclo-Bio ΤΜ
biofilter design. The Cyclo-Bio ΤΜ biofilter’s design eliminates all internal piping and
manifolds associated with conventional fluidized-sand biofilters, as described by
Summerfelt and Cleasby (1996) and Summerfelt (1999). A typical header and pipelateral
system can contribute up to 0.1-0.3 atm of additional operating pressure, which the
pumps must work against. In a Cyclo-Bio ΤΜ , this manifold and internal piping is
replaced by an outside annulus (integral with the vessel wall) that supplies water into the
bottom of the vessel (i.e., at the base of the sand bed) through a continuous slot that
circumscribes the vessel wall (see Figure 1). This design is very analogous to a slotted
inlet used in animal housing to introduce air uniformly to the entire building. The
pumping energy savings are a result of eliminating the conventional ‘pipe-lateral with
distribution orifices’ type of distribution system a slotted inlet about the circumference of
the vessel that incurs very little pressure drop due to the much lower water velocities
employed. The Cyclo-Bio ΤΜ also decreases the cost associated with fluidized sand
filters both in terms of equipment components and the time required to install and setup a
new biofilter.
Tests were conducted on a series of 0.9 m (3 ft) diameter units and several 3.5 m (11.5 ft)
diameter units employed at Fingerlakes Aquaculture LLC growout production facility
(Groton, NY). Sand expansion characteristics in the Cyclo-Bio ΤΜ biofilter are shown in
Table 2. More extensive sand expansion tests (Figures 2 and 3) were also conducted
within a 15 cm (6”) i.d. Cyclo-Bio ΤΜ vessel at Marine Biotech in Beverly, Massachusetts.
Table 2. Bed expansions obtained for two sizes of reactors using 20/40 mesh sands and
Cyclo-Bio ΤΜ sand filter design (courtesy of Fingerlakes Aquaculture LLC, Groton, NY)
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Diam, ft cm/s Expan, % Farm
3 0.84 2.9% a
3 0.86 2.9% a
3 0.85 2.9% a
3 1.45 14.4% a
3 1.45 14.4% a
3 1.98 28.8% a
3 1.93 28.8% a
3 1.91 28.8% a
3 2.55 22.0% b
3 2.55 23.3% b
3 2.55 31.3% b
3 2.20 20.8% b
11.5 1.44 39.3% c
11.5 1.96 26.3% c
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2 President and CEO James Aldridge (phone: 978-927-8720).
3