After completion of land-based tests with marine, brackish and fresh water – all using the current ballast water treatment system design – a test report package for PureBallast has now been finalized by the independent lab DNV GL. Consequently, Alfa Laval has filed its type approval application with the US Coast Guard for the PureBallast 3 family.
Alfa Laval is headed for US Coast Guard type approval in ballast water treatment. As expected, the company completed all tests of PureBallast during the summer of this year. These were performed using the CMFDA/FDA (staining) method approved by the US Coast Guard and were conducted at DHI in Denmark. It is significant to note that the testing involved the same hardware, power consumption and flow as the already market-leading IMO-approved version of the PureBallast 3 family.
“We were confident that PureBallast would deliver high-performance results without any change to its components or system design,” says Anders Lindmark, General Manager, Business Centre PureBallast. “Test results have now been submitted and they conclusively demonstrate that PureBallast provides reliable biological disinfection at full flow in all water salinities. The system has also met the rigorous mechanical and electrical testing verification schemes required by the US Coast Guard and IMO.”
Alfa Laval has now filed its type approval application, including the CMFDA/FDA test results, with the US Coast Guard. The company looks forward to supporting customers globally in complying with their ballast water management obligations as determined by US Coast Guard legislation and the newly ratified Ballast Water Management Convention.
Meanwhile, Alfa Laval continues to support the efforts to validate the Most Probable Number (MPN) method, which the company sees as a preferable alternative to the CMFDA/FDA method for UV treatment systems. Alfa Laval’s decision to proceed with CMFDA/FDA testing was based on the importance of providing customers discharging in US waters with a type-approved solution as quickly as possible.