Marine & Waterway Solutions is the exclusive worldwide source for the MBS® Technology in marine and waterway environments. If a project involves the production handling, treatment or disposal of leachable hazardous heavy metal waste streams, the patented MBS® Technology is the most cost effective solution on the market. MBS® stands for Molecular Bonding System which utilizes a solid-phase chemical stabilization process to eliminate the leachability of heavy metals in soils, slags and solid wastes.

MBS® has successfully passed all of EPA’s Leachate Tests, including the Multiple Extraction Procedure (MEP) test which simulates 1000 years of exposure and determines the long term stability of treated wastes.

MBS® Technology Advantages:

• Provides a Permanent Cost-Effective Solution
• Treats Multiple Metals Concurrently
• Works in Presence of Other Contaminants
• Not pH Sensitive
• Ex-Situ & In-Situ Application
• Reactions are Immediate with No Cure Times
• No Change to Physical Characteristics of Processed Soils
• Contractor Friendly - Simple, Fast, Easy, Conventional, Safe
• Multiple Application Alternatives
• Processed Materials Reused for Contour, Cover, Roadbed or Fill
• Reuse Eliminates Transportation Costs
• Works for Multiple Industrial Wastes
• Pollution Prevention Through In-Line Treatment
• Minimizes Long Term Liabilities
• Provides for Reduced Insurance Costs

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Permanent Solutions

At many sites around the nation, heavy metals have been mined, smelted, or used in other industrial processes. The waste (tailings, smelter slag, etc.) has sometimes been left behind to pollute surface and ground water. The heavy metals most frequently encountered in this waste include arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, nickel, and zinc, all of which pose risks for human health and the environment. They typically are spread out over former industrial sites and may cover acres of land. Cleanup (or remediation) technologies available for reducing the harmful effects at heavy metal-contaminated sites include excavation (physical removal of the contaminated material) or stabilization of the metals in the soil on site.

The Patented MBS® Technology utilizes a solid-phase chemical stabilization process to reduce the leachability of heavy metals in soils, sludge’s, slags, ashes, and other solid industrial wastes. The MBS® Technology is a method of soil stabilization that can be performed ex-situ or in-situ. The MBS® Technology is also used for pollution prevention and “Timed-Release” in-situ and ex-situ remediation.

Excavation and physical removal of the soil is the oldest remediation method for contaminated soil. Advantages include the complete removal of the contaminants and the relatively rapid cleanup of a contaminated site. Disadvantages include the dilemma that contaminants are moved to a different place, where they must still be monitored. Other risks include spreading contaminated soil and dust particles during removal and transport and the high cost. Excavation and off site storage or disposal is the most expensive option, especially when large amounts of soil must be removed or disposed as hazardous or toxic waste.

The MBS® Technology is a method of soil stabilization* that can be performed ex-situ or in-situ. If the site requires excavation of the soil for redevelopment purposes, the soil is treated on site with the MBS® Technology and the soils are rendered non hazardous. The heavy metals can be left on site and re purposed for beneficial use saving time and money. The MBS® Technology treats the heavy metals in a way that eliminates their ability to adversely effect human health and the environment. Eliminating the bioavailability of heavy metals on site has many advantages over excavation as the metals are converted to a form that is not easily absorbed by plants, animals, or people.

Where the site does not require excavation of the soil for redevelopment purposes, The MBS® Technology is used in situ (in place). This process does not disrupt the environment or generate hazardous wastes and is considered a “Green Best Management Practice **.”

* USEPA DEFINITION - Stabilization: Conversion of the active organic matter in sludge into inert, harmless material.

** USEPA DEFINITION - Green Remediation: The practice of considering all environmental effects of remedy implementation and incorporating options to maximize the net environmental benefit of cleanup actions.

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Cost Effective Solutions

In either the ex-situ or in-situ application of The MBS® Technology, the resulting material is non hazardous. From this point forward the advantages of The MBS® Technology continue to add cost savings and advantages. Minimizes long term liability is one major factor but MWS has also seen the insurability of a site made possible as no concern for reoccurrence of the pollution is a cost and risk factor. This has two beneficial effects. The minerals (and the heavy metals) cannot be easily spread by water to pollute streams, lakes, or other groundwater. Also the heavy metal phosphates are less likely to enter the food chain by being absorbed into plants or animals that may eat soil particles. Table 1 shows the cost of treating the soil by in situ fixation may be about half the cost of excavation and disposal of heavy metal contaminated soil. This method is relatively rapid and takes about the same amount of time as excavation.

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Heavy Metal Solutions

MWS has solutions for the following pollutant heavy metals:

-ARSENIC

-CADMIUM

-CHROMIUM

-COPPER

-LEAD

-MERCURY

-NICKEL

-ZINC

(click on each metal for popup information)

Examples of some recent references to sources of heavy metals in the environment include:

-Non-Point Sources Include

agricultural feed additives

• fertilizers and composts
• fungicides
• pesticides

Smelters

• dust
• runoff from waste piles
• input to marine aerosols
• non-ferrous metallurgical plants (air pollution)
• wood
• antifouling paints (and pressure washing effluents)
• atmospheric deposition and acidic precipitation

Urban runoff

• roadways
• stormwater
• urban building materials
• corrosion and water distribution systems
• materials
• power generation (e.g. coal fired power plants)

The MBS® Technology Provides

Permanent, Cost Effective Hazardous Heavy Metal Solutions

-Point Sources Include

Mining

• mine spoils
• mine tailings
• acid mine drainage sewage outfalls and sludge
• dredge spoils

Waste disposal at sea

• miscellaneous industrial effluents and industrial outfalls
• waste landfilling storage
• industrial emissions to the atmosphere
• port loading / unloading facilities
• shipbuilding and maintenance
• ports (copper slag for sand blasting of ship hulls, discharge of bilge water
• offshore oil and gas exploration and production

The MBS® Technology Provides a

Cost Savings Advantage

 

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