AbTech's Smart Sponge[R] Plus takes on health-threatening bacteria.AbTech Industries is offering the Smart Sponge Plus, the only nontoxic, fully recyclable filtration system that destroys bacteria at the street level. This breakthrough technology creates a critical line of defense for the environment by preventing pollution of waterways caused by urban and stormwater runoff. For some years, local governments nationwide have been using AbTech's cost-effective filtration systems at the entrances of their storm drain storm drain n. 1. A storm sewer. 2. A catch basin. sewer systems. AbTech's filtration systems, such as the Ultra-Urban[R] Filter with Smart Sponge technology, encapsulate en·cap·su·late v. 1. To form a capsule or sheath around. 2. To become encapsulated. en·cap and successfully remove harmful substances, including hydrocarbons, oil, grease, and other toxins, before they enter local waterways. With Smart Sponge Plus, cities, stormwater professionals, and industrial entities also have the opportunity to destroy microorganisms such as Staphylococcus aureus Staphylococcus au·re·us n. A bacterium that causes furunculosis, pyemia, osteomyelitis, suppuration of wounds, and food poisoning. Staphylococcus aureus Staphylococcus pyogenes , E. coli E. coli: see Escherichia coli. E. coli in full Escherichia coli Species of bacterium that inhabits the stomach and intestines. E. coli can be transmitted by water, milk, food, or flies and other insects. , and fecal coliforms. U.S. EPA EPA eicosapentaenoic acid. EPA abbr. eicosapentaenoic acid EPA, n.pr See acid, eicosapentaenoic. EPA, n. has identified AbTech's Ultra-Urban Filter series with Smart Sponge technology as a best management practice under the federal guidelines that local governments must follow. Rodolfo Manzone, Ph.D., AbTech's executive vice president and chief technology officer, explained that Smart Sponge Plus employs an antimicrobial agent, chemically bound to the Smart Sponge polymer filtration material, which deactivates health-threatening microorganisms without releasing chemicals or leaching. Independent field testing has validated the effectiveness of the Smart Sponge Plus in multiple locations with a variety of microorganisms found in stormwater runoff. "Unlike other antimicrobials that act by poisoning harmful microorganisms," Manzone said, "Smart Sponge Plus technology is based on the interaction of the antimicrobial agent with the cell membrane Cell membrane The membrane that surrounds the cytoplasm of a cell; it is also called the plasma membrane or, in a more general sense, a unit membrane. This is a very thin, semifluid, sheetlike structure made of four continuous monolayers of molecules. of the microorganism microorganism /mi·cro·or·gan·ism/ (-or´gah-nizm) a microscopic organism; those of medical interest include bacteria, fungi, and protozoa. . Simply put, it acts by rupturing cell membranes--preventing potentially harmful microorganisms from functioning, developing, or reproducing. Because no chemical or physical change occurs in the antimicrobial agent, the filtration system maintains long-term effectiveness." For more information, contact AbTech by phone at (800) 545-8999, or visit its Web site at www.abtechindustries.com. |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion