StormwateRx
StormwateRx LLC, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, has introduced its Clara Filter, a new system that the company says is ideal for high-flow or high-solids-loading stormwater treatment applications.
The Clara Filter is a new, high-performance version of the company’s Clara Separator, which is designed to provide removal of floatable hydrocarbons and settleable solids such as sand and grit. Compared with the Clara Separator, the Clara Filter captures finer solids, particulate metals and neutral buoyancy trash and debris, while retaining the ability to trap hydrocarbons at a high flow rate, according to StormwateRx.
The patent pending Clara Filter is a passive, high-rate media filter in a concrete structure that can serve as stand-alone treatment or as a pretreatment best management practice for sites with high total suspended solid- (TSS-) loading and frequent high-flow stormwater events, StormwateRx says.
The Clara Filter features media formulated for high-flow and high-solids-retention capacity and to remove free oil. StormwateRx says typical TSS removal using the system exceeds 70 percent, with a demonstrated reduction of up to 90 percent.
The system operates by gravity—no power and no mechanical or moving parts are present to malfunction, according to the company. The filtration media trap particulates as the stormwater flows through the filter’s circuitous pathway. The larger pore spaces and media consistency are designed to allow a greater volume of stormwater to pass through the unit than can be processed by other filtration technologies. The unit’s filtration media is housed in a large-volume concrete vault with filtration chamber access through a manhole or hatch openings. An integrated pump system that discharges to a downstream polishing filter is available as an option.
Using the Clara Filter can help extend maintenance intervals, reduce media replacement costs and help a company’s downstream filtration treatment system operate at peak efficiency to reduce a broad range of industrial stormwater pollutants, StormwateRx says, helping sites meet benchmarks.