Outdoor Apparatus and Methods to Treat Wastes, Wastewater and Contaminated Water Bodies

Abstract

The invention relates to an apparatus, methods and applications to grow microorganisms on-site to treat contaminated environments. Furthermore, the invention refers to an apparatus that is designed to function under a wide range of environmental conditions including extreme cold, extreme heat and direct exposure to sunlight. Such environments normally reduce the shelf-life of the organisms in the holding chamber that feeds the fermenter where they are being grown. These environments can also lower the growth rate of the organisms in the fermenter causing diminished cell output. Quite often the optimum point of application for the organisms is outdoor and too far from structures with appropriate protection from ultraviolet radiation from the sun or from excessive cold or hot weather. The invention also claims a dark coating that blocks ultraviolet radiation and a special coating that reflects heat away from the bioreactor. In addition, the invention claims a flexible micropore diffuser that allows aeration while gently mixing the fermentation broth. Finally, the invention claims a membrane bacterial filter for the air supply which prevents pathogens from entering the fermentation chamber. Such membrane bacterial filter is very economical and easy to replace.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

Brief Description of the Drawings

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of the invention. It shows all the elements of the invention with the auger system 10 (FIG. 1) in an angle to deliver the microorganisms and nutrients into the fermentation chamber 1 (FIG. 1).

FIG. 2 does not show all the elements in the invention. It shows the auger system 10 (FIG. 2) in a vertical configuration to deliver the microorganisms and nutrients into the fermentation chamber 1 (FIG. 2).

FIG. 3 does not show all the elements in the invention. It shows the feed storage 9 (FIG. 3) and auger system 10 (FIG. 3) in a configuration hanging above the fermentation chamber 1 (FIG. 3),

FIG. 4 shows data of the effect of the heat-reflective coating in claim 1(g). The data shows the temperature recorded by three calibrated thermometers. One was directly exposed to sunlight showing a temperature of 129 F. The second was inside a high density polyethylene (HDPE) tank with recorded temperature of 126 F. The third thermometer was also inside a high density polyethylene (HDPE) tank but this tank was coated with the heat-reflective coating in claim 1(g).

The present invention relates to a cultivation system for bacteria, fungi or actinomyces in a bioreactor that is placed on-site at the location of a contaminated environment described in claim 2. The organisms degrade the contaminants in the environment through digestion. Such process is known in the art as bioremediation. The organisms used in the art are safe and efficient in the degradation of various contaminants. The formulation used in the bioreactor depends on the target contaminants. Customized formulations can be prepared to target a wide range of contaminants at the same time. The organisms dispensed into the contaminated environment to degrade the selected contaminants can be chosen from those that would prosper in the conditions of the environment where they would be applied. Some of these conditions are pH, temperature, nutrient levels, salinity, presence of bacterial inhibitors, availability or lack of oxygen etc.

The apparatus and methods of the invention have features that allow the growth of organisms efficiently outdoors under various environmental conditions such as extreme heat, extreme cold or direct intense sunlight. Quite often the location where the organisms need to be applied is not near a building or enclosure that can provide protection from extreme temperature or sunlight.

High temperatures (104 F or above) and ultraviolet radiation from direct sunlight are detrimental for the growth of microorganisms. For these reasons, the bioreactors are often enclosed away from such environments to ensure efficient growth. Stored organisms in feed chambers are also affected by high heat and even constant low ultraviolet radiation from sunlight. Many vegetative species (organisms that do not produce spores) which are very useful such as pseudomonas, paracoccus, nitrobacter, nitrosomas, thiobacillus are very sensitive to high heat and ultraviolet radiation from sunlight. Loss of viability results in low counts of these species in the feed going to the fermentation chamber. Furthermore, excess heat and sunlight can also cause low proliferation of various species when they reproduce themselves in the fermentation broth. On the other hand, cold temperature slows proliferation of organisms in the fermentation chamber also resulting in low cell counts.

The invention overcomes ultraviolet radiation from the sun with a dark coating that keeps out ultraviolet radiation from sunlight. Excess heat is overcome with a coating that reflects heat. The coating is made up of a special polymer and micro-ceramic spheres described in claim 1 g). The optional canopy system or shed in claim 1 h) also aids to keep excessive solar heat radiation from overheating the fermentation bath and the organisms in the feed chamber of claim 1 f). Additionally, the portable air conditioner of claim 1 i) helps protect from high temperature. During excessive hot weather, the air conditioner provides cool air into the control box to protect electronics. The cool air exits via a tube into the double wall of the feed chamber that stores the organisms or into a cooling jacket wrapped around the chamber. This prevents high heat in the storage chamber and allows the feeding organisms to maintain an extended shelf life. The air exits the double wall into the inlet port of the air pump that aerates the fermentation chamber. This allows cool air into the fermentation chamber preventing it from overheating due to environmental heat. The size and power of the air conditioner depends on the size of the reactor system. Guidelines of the size and power needed can be provided by one of various air conditioning systems specialized in electronic systems such as Kooltronic from New Jersey. The air conditioner has a dust filter to prevent unwanted dust from entering the control box.

Cold weather is normally overcome with the use of a heater. However, if the weather is very cold and there is not enough heating capacity, the fermentation media does not achieve optimum temperature. This is especially true when the environment temperature is near freezing or below it. Cold air enters the chamber during aeration of the fermentation media and often may overcome the heating capacity of the heating element. The invention uses a heater with high heat capacity. Over engineering of this element as described in claim 1 e) allows the fermentation chamber to be placed in very cold environments. Because the heating element is set to a specific temperature, there is no danger of overheating the media. It is important for the bioreactor to generate high enough cell counts especially if the contaminated environment weather is cold. The reason for this is that cold weather reduces biological activity dramatically. In order to make up for the lower biological activity, higher numbers of organisms are needed for proper digestion of contaminants.

The bioreactor contains a flexible air diffuser (claim 1b) that can provide air or pure oxygen to the organism culture. This diffuser is composed of a flexible micropore hose that can be shaped as desired to allow complete mixing of the culture without the need of mixers or recirculating pumps. Pumps create shear stress that can damage cell membranes. The flexible hose diffuser with micropores provides aeration and gentle agitation of the cells during the process of fermentation to allow the organisms to interact with their nutrients.

An additional feature of the invention is a membrane-air filter that prevents bacteria, fungi, spores and higher lifeforms from entering the fermentation chamber through the air supply. The membrane has a low pore size of 0.2 microns to prevent pathogenic microorganisms from the air to enter the fermenter. This provides protection from growing pathogens in the fermentation chamber which can be very dangerous to operators of the fermenter or anyone working near it. The best location for this biological filter is after the air pump and before the air diffuser. Biological filters are normally expensive and can only be reused a few times before discarding them. They also need to be removed and taken to a location where they can be autoclaved every time before they can be reused. The membrane filter in the invention is very economical and effective. Several membranes can be autoclaved sterilized and kept at the reactor location in an autoclaved bag. After several cycles of the bioreactor, the membrane can be discarded and another membrane can be placed. Replacement of the membrane is easy, fast, economical and convenient. The membrane can be held in place by various means such as clamped connectors or a screwable PVC connector union as described in claim 1 d).

In the art of bioremediation, contaminated waters, soil or biosolids are remediated using organisms such as bacteria or fungi sold as dormant or stabilized cultures. These products are sold in powder, pellets, liquid or in gel form. In all cases, the cells have to be placed in a state of dormancy that is known by those in the arts. This dormancy process is necessary for the shelf life of products sold in containers. The various dormancy processes kill a large percentage of the organisms. As much as half or more of the culture cells can be lost in the dormancy process.

In addition, commercially sold products have many high costs associated with them such as manufacturing, labor, process control, dormancy methods, dilution, standardization methods to maintain consistent viable cells, packaging and freight of diluted products. Even though powder products can contain desiccated organisms in spore form or in vegetative form (whole cells), these products have the additional cost of controlled dehydration of cells under rigorous conditions to reduce cell death. Pelletized products have the additional cost of pelletizing.

Liquid commercial products can be sold as spores or in vegetative form (whole cells). Liquid spore products are normally sold at concentrations that range from 0.1 billion cells per milliliter to 1 billion cells per milliliter (cell forming units or cfu). In addition to the costs mentioned before, they have two significant disadvantages. The first disadvantage is that not all microorganisms used in bioremediation produce spores. A great number of organisms used in bioremediation only exist in vegetative form. This greatly limits the organism species that can be used and reduces the efficiency and scope of target substrates and environments. The second major disadvantage is that spores could take hours to come out of dormancy and germinate into active vegetative cells depending on the temperature, oxygen level, pH and types of nutrients in the environment where they are used. In many cases, by the time the organisms germinate, they can be washed away such as in the case of application in the sewer or in short detention time systems. Even when they germinate, it takes time before they begin to reproduce themselves. This causes the organisms to reproduce themselves less times during the detention time of the contaminated environment. In the case of an onsite bioreactor such as the one in this application, the organisms are applied to the environment in vegetative form ready to begin to digest the contaminants and to reproduce themselves.

There are commercial liquid products that contain vegetative cells. These types of products also suffer from the same costly issues mentioned. Some products that are fully dormant in vegetative form need to undergo very severe dormancy methods that kill a large amount of the cells in the batch. Also, some of the chemicals used in the dormancy process can produce powerful-undesirable pungent odors. Other liquid vegetative products are in a semi-dormant state. These products are sold diluted. They are normally 0.1 to 0.2 billion cells per milliliter (cfu). The reason for this is that these semi-dormant bacteria are stored with some nutrients to keep them alive. The concentration of organisms and nutrients cannot be too high because the container would get bloated with gases produced during metabolism. In addition, if a high concentration of cells is used, the nutrients would be depleted faster causing the cells to die and shorten the product shelf life. Finally, care must be taken with these semi-dormant products because if the container is open and it is not fully used, it has the risk of getting contaminated by pathogens from the environment which would grow at the expense of the nutrients in the product. This poses a danger for people handling a contaminated product.

Bioremediation products can also be sold in gel blocks or gel cylinders. These products dissolve gradually in the environment where they are used. The organisms in these products are in spore form because heat is needed to solidify the gel and if vegetative organisms are used, they would die with the heat. The gel also contains antimicrobial products to prevent the spores from activating and begin to grow prematurely inside the gel. Antimicrobial products would also kill vegetative cells in the gel if they were used. For these reasons, gel products suffer from the same disadvantages as other spore products which need time to germinate. Finally, gel blocks or cylinders have an additional costly manufacturing and handling processes associated with them.

An on-site bioreactor solves all of the shortcomings mentioned. They produce high concentrations of vegetative organisms. This concentration normally ranges from 2 to 4 billion cells per milliliter but concentrations as high as 10 billion per ml could be achieved. Spore formers and vegetative organisms can be grown in the bioreactor and are applied to the contaminated environment when they are in vegetative form during the stationary phase of growth. At this stage, the organisms are entering the starvation mode. When they are applied to the contaminated environment, they begin to digest contaminants right away. Because the organisms from the bioreactor are active, they do not need time to come out of the dormancy state such as it is the case of dry vegetative bacteria or bacteria in spore form. In the on-site bioreactor, there are no dormancy steps of manufacturing that kill a high percentage of organisms. Also, there are no expensive standardization and process controls because the bioreactor outputs organisms at consistent numbers. In addition, there are no labor, packaging and transporting costs of diluted products. Finally, the species of microorganism that go into the bioreactor can be customized to target specific contaminants and to thrive under the conditions of the environment where they are applied such as pH, temperature, oxygen level, salinity, nutrient levels, toxins etc. With bottled products, this is not normally done because bottled products are manufactured in large batches for a wide range of needs and types of environments. In most cases these products are not customized for the specific contaminants and conditions of the environment where they will be used.

There are other on-site bioreactor systems but they do not have features that allow them to be used outdoors in extreme temperatures or exposed to direct sunlight. This limits their use to mild weathers or indoors buildings to allow them to maintain effective cell counts. High temperature can damage electronics, organisms and nutrients in the storage chamber. It also affects the fermentation broth making it difficult to maintain the optimum temperature for the organisms to grow efficiently in the bioreactor. In addition, if a bioreactor is outdoors, ultraviolet light from sunlight may also hinder the optimum growth of organism. Additionally, some of these bioreactors lack a biological filter to prevent pathogens from entering the bioreactor via the air supply. Others relay on expensive filters that need to be taken to a lab for autoclaving and then placed back in the bioreactor before they are eventually discarded.

For example U.S. Pat. No. 5,840,182 granted in 1998 to Lucido, Keenan, Premuzic, Lin and Shelenkova describes an on-site bioreactor that has three chambers. The first chamber holds the feed microorganisms, a second chamber supplies water with inorganic nutrients and a third chamber provides organic nutrients. This patent does have a biological air filter to prevent pathogenic contamination from entering the fermentation chamber through the air supply. Pathogens growing in the fermentation chamber are potentially dangerous for anyone working with or near the bioreactor. Some pathogens can produce natural antimicrobials to allow them to dominate environments even when non-pathogens have been fed in large numbers at the start of the fermentation process. The patent, also, does not make mention of a suitable heating element with reasonable capacity to maintain temperature in the fermentation chamber in the event of cold weather. When environmental air is provided as a source of oxygen to the fermentation chamber, the temperature of the air may be very low in the case of the winter season in many areas. The large volume of air needed for oxygenation will make it difficult for the fermentation chamber to maintain optimum growth temperature for the organisms. In addition, the apparatus does not have a cooling element that allows the control of excessive environmental heat in hot months. Excessive heat from exposure to the environment temperature and from direct sunlight will raise the temperature of the fermentation chamber above optimum causing a reduction in cell proliferation or even death. Excessive heat will also kill organisms in the feed chamber. This will cause lower initial cell counts during fermentation which can cause lower cell counts at the end of the fermentation cycle. In addition, lower initial cell counts make it more likely that pathogens which infiltrate the chamber would dominate the fermentation broth. The bioreactor in the cited patent is not designed for outdoor use in extreme hot or cold weather. It is limited to enclosure in buildings or temperature controlled structures. The bioreactor has additional shortcomings. It uses a mixing system to stir the components in the fermenter. This can be a source of shear stress to the cells being grown causing cell rupture and reducing cell output. In contrast, the flexible hose diffuser claimed in the present patent application mixes the contents thoroughly without shear stress. Finally, the patent cited above does not make any mention of protection from ultraviolet radiation. Some of the organisms in the feed tank and in the fermenter can be damaged by even low-constant levels of ultraviolet radiation from sunlight.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,402,941 granted in June 2002 to Lucido and Shaffer consists of a fermentation chamber and a nutrient chamber that contains inorganic and organic nutrients. The patent does not describe a biological filter that would prevent pathogens from entering the fermentation chamber through the air going in for aeration. This is dangerous for people working with the bioreactor or near it. Pathogens can enter the fermentation chamber through the air supply and reproduce themselves in large numbers. Furthermore, there is no mention of sufficient heating capacity to prevent extreme-cold winter air from cooling the fermentation chamber. Moreover, there is no mention of any cooling system to protect feed organisms and organisms in the fermentation chamber from extreme environmental heat. Finally, no mention is made of protection from ultraviolet radiation from the sun. This system does not seem to be designed for all-weather and outdoor operation.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,790,355 granted in September 2004 to Shaffer, Fernandes and Lucido describes a bioreactor system. This bioreactor does not provide protection from the environment in excessively cold or hot weather. There is no mention of enough heating capacity or a cooling system that would keep the fermentation chamber within the needed temperature for optimum fermentation. In addition, there is no mention of a coating or any other means to reflect heat and ultraviolet radiation from direct sunlight. Another shortcoming is that the air is brought into the fermentation chamber via an air pump exits into the chamber in a submersed “airtube”. Such tube does not appear to provide adequate air bubble distribution for optimum oxygen exchange and mixing of the contents in the fermentation chamber. This is in direct contrast with the flexible air hose diffuser described in the present patent application which can be bent into any shape to maximize oxygen transfer and provide gentle mixing free of shear stress through small bubbles for optimum oxygen exchange. Finally, the air filtration in this patent (U.S. Pat. No. 6,790,355) is not economical nor easy to change such as is the case of the autoclavable filter membrane described in the present patent application.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,982,032 granted in January 2006 to the same inventors, Shaffer, Fernandes and Lucido also has the same shortcomings described above in U.S. Pat. No. 6,790,355. In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 7,022,234 granted in April 2006 to the same inventors, Shaffer, Fernandes and Lucido once again has the same shortcomings.

In another instance of an on-site bioreactor, U.S. Pat. No. 6,335,191 granted to Kiplinger, Pruitt, Evaro, Pearce and Robert Clarence in January 2002 describes a bioreactor that uses a vortex system to mix organisms and to bring them in contact with air. This system has a recirculating pump to mix the organisms in a vortex and bring them to the surface for aeration. One of the shortcomings of this system is that the constant shear stress of a recirculating pump can damage the cell membrane of organisms reducing their numbers. Furthermore, there is no mention of a bacterial air filter for the air going into the fermentation chamber. The potential of pathogens coming into the fermentation chamber can be dangerous. There is also no mention of heating or cooling to offset the temperature outside the fermentation chamber and the temperature of the air going in. This is critical as optimum temperature for the organisms being grown is essential for optimum cell counts. Finally, there is no mention of protection from direct sunlight. This system does not seem to be suitable for outdoor operation in extreme weather. It is indeed intended to be used inside temperature-controlled buildings. U.S. Pat. No. 7,081,361 granted to Pearce, Kiplinger, Evaro, Pruitt and Colarruso in July, 2006 describe virtually the same vortex system as mentioned above and the patent has the same shortcomings described. The same inventors were granted U.S. Pat. No. 7,635,587 in December, 2009. This patent also has the same shortcomings. U.S. Pat. No. 8,093,040 granted to the same inventors in January 2012 also has the same disadvantages described because it uses the same vortex system with no bacterial-air filter, nor heating or cooling to withstand outdoor weather nor protection from sunlight. U.S. Pat. No. 8,551,762 granted to Fleming, Boesch-Deveze, Evaro, Pearce, Rushing and Trevino in October, 2013, also describes the same vortex system with the same shortcomings.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,579,712 granted in June 2003 to Rothweiler comprises of a bacteria solution breeding tank (fermentation chamber), a bacteria solution tank for feeding organisms and an aeration pump. The bioreactor uses a recirculating pump which can be a source of constant shear stress and affect the membrane of the cells being grown reducing their numbers. The system has no cooling of the stock feed solution nor for the breeding tank in case of excessive environmental heat. Moreover, there is no protection from ultraviolet radiation. The patent also mentions an air filtration of two microns in pore size. A filter with pore size of two microns is not sufficient to prevent bacteria or bacteria spores from entering the system. A 0.2 micron filter is normally used for biological filters. An economical, autoclavable and easy to replace membrane filter as the one in this patent application has 0.2 micron pores. This membrane is effective, economical and can be used for multiple batches before it is replaced.

Canadian patent CA2368407 was granted to Moffitt, Ehrlich and Arrington in Jul. 24, 2003. This bioreactor does not have a biological air filtration system to prevent pathogens from entering the fermentation chamber through the air supply. It also has no cooling for the inoculant nor for the fermentation chamber in case of high environmental heat. In addition, there is no mention of protection of inoculants from ultraviolet radiation from sunlight. The system also uses liquid inoculants which are especially sensitive to heat and ultraviolet radiation. Liquid inoculants are also vulnerable to pathogens because water and nutrients allow them to reproduce themselves if they enter the inoculant. Liquid inoculants are normally no more than 0.2 to 0.4 billion cells per milliliter offering low competition to pathogens. Additionally, because of the low organisms count, the system is also bulky and not appropriate for small places. Inoculants with the option of powders, pellets, flakes or tablets like the one in the present patent application can be as much as 2 to 100 billion cells per gram. This makes the bioreactor system much more compact allowing the entire system to be placed on a standard pallet which is ideal for outdoor use. The absence of water also makes it hard for pathogens to reproduce themselves in the inoculant. In short, the system in the patent mentioned above does not keep pathogens out, it is bulky and it is not suitable for outdoor application in extreme weather.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,879,593 granted in February 2011 to Whiteman describes a bioreactor that can be used onsite.

The system can be used with a pre-fermentation and a post fermentation chamber to increase the number of organisms to be dispensed. However, at any stage of fermentation there is the possibility and danger of allowing pathogens into the system. If the media from pre-fermentation is used to feed the fermentation chamber and this media is then used for the post fermenter, the chances of incorporating pathogens at any stage causing them to proliferate increases substantially. Pathogens can be dangerous for people working with the bioreactor or near it. Some pathogens produce antimicrobial components which allow them to curtail competition from non-pathogens and reproduce themselves in unwanted numbers. This can occur in any of the fermenting stages and carry on into the next stage increasing their numbers further. A single stage fermentation chamber is safer. The cited patent also uses a pump to recirculate and mix the contents of the fermentation chamber. This is a constant source of shear stress which can damage cell membranes and reduce optimal growth in the fermenter. A flexible hose diffuser such the one claimed in the present patent application aerates and mixes the contents thoroughly without shear stress. The patent cited above also uses an inoculant that feeds the fermenter. This inoculant needs to be refrigerated to maintain its shelf-life. This makes the inoculant vulnerable to power outages. If a power outage cuts off energy to the fermentation chamber for a day, only one day of fermentation broth can be affected. However, since the inoculant in this system needs to be refrigerated, a single day of exposure to heat can damage the inoculant. This would produce a feed with low cell counts that would affect all the batches fed with that inoculant. In addition, it would also increase the chance of pathogenic contamination because of low competition from the inoculant. The cited patent can also use organisms in powder or gel form enclosed in water soluble capsules. However, there is no provision to protect the capsules from excessive environmental heat or from ultraviolet radiation from sunlight. Finally, the air filter appears to be a standard biofilter. These types of filters can be used a few times before they must be removed and autoclaved. After a few cycles they need to be discarded. They are hard to maintain and they are very expensive costing several hundred dollars that would be passed on to the customer. The biological filter described in the present patent application uses a membrane. Many membrane filters can be cut to size at the same time. Then, they are autoclaved to take to the location of the bioreactor. When needed a filter membrane can be replaced in less than a minute. Each membrane cut to size for the filter is only a few pennies and can run several cycles of the bioreactor. The patent cited above is not for outdoor use and it is vulnerable to pathogen contamination.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,052,873 granted in November 2011 to Foster, Smith, Duos and Guidotti describes a bioreactor that achieves aeration by recirculation of the fluid medium from the top of the fermentation chamber through a pipe that runs the length of the inner wall. The conical bottom has an orifice allowing for recirculation of the fluid medium tangentially to the sidewalls causing a vortex and mixing at the top. The air is supplied through a vent port. The constant shear stress of a pump to mix the fermentation media can affect the cell membrane of the organisms being grown reducing cell output. The air inlet has no biological filter that would prevent pathogens from growing in the fermentation media causing a potential danger for workers using the bioreactor or working near it. There is no description of a heating or a cooling system that would allow the fermentation media to remain at optimum temperature for the growth of organisms if the outside weather is too cold or too hot. There is also no description of protection against ultraviolet radiation from direct sunlight. The system also seems to be limited to a batch bioreactor for industrial wastewater. The same type of bioreactor was patented by the same inventors mentioned above in U.S. Pat. No. 8,486,266 issued in July 2013. Both patents share the same title: “Bacterial cultivation system for growth of substrate specific micro-organisms for use in industrial wastewater remediation”. The bioreactor is virtually the same and has the same shortcomings mentioned above. U.S. Pat. No. 8,282,826 was also assigned to the same three inventors in October 2012 and describes the same bioreactor to grow substrate-specific micro-organisms for use in industrial wastewater remediation. This patent also suffers the same shortcomings as described above.

Although the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. An apparatus for growing and delivering biosafety-level-one bacterial, fungal or actinomyces cultures to an environment containing wastes or contaminants. The apparatus can dispense the microorganisms while operating in batch, semi-continuous and continuous manner. A batch application would need an operator to turn on the bioreactor, fill the fermenter chamber with water and apply a water soluble bag containing microorganisms and nutrients into the fermentation chamber. Then, 24 hours later, the operator would drain the fermenter to apply the organisms to the contaminated environment. This would be done every time that the bioreactor needs to run a cycle. A semi-automatic bioreactor can automatically turn on and fill the fermentation chamber with water. An operator would add a water soluble bag with the organisms and the bioreactor can dose it as needed based on a program in the control system. An automatic bioreactor would turn on the bioreactor, fill the fermentation chamber with water and apply the organisms with nutrients. The fermentation chamber would maintain a pre-set broth level and the organisms' activity would be maintained as the bioreactor doses the product. A high biological activity is maintained by keeping the fermenter broth level and by feeding organisms with nutrients to the fermenter as needed. The apparatus can be powered by solar panels, gas-electrical generator, air turbines or an extension cord with the end enclosed in a water resistant control box such as NEMA 3 or 4 containing a GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) protector.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the fermentation chamber 1 (FIGS. 1,2 and 3) comprises of a container holding a bacterial, fungal or actinomyces fermentation culture. Water can be fed into the fermentation chamber directly with a water pipe 2 (FIG. 1) with a solenoid or actuator valve 3 (FIG. 1). The fermentation chamber could also be filled from a reservoir tank that is maintained at a preset water level. In both cases, an activated charcoal filter 4 (FIG. 1) precedes the fermentation chamber to neutralize chlorine or other oxidizer that may be present in the water. The fermentation chamber can be made of plastic such as HDPE or other material that has low heat conductivity in case that the environment temperature is too high or low. In this manner, the impact of temperature from the environment is reduced so that the organisms can grow at their optimum temperature in the fermenter and produce high cell counts. The fermentation chamber is kept at a fixed temperature per the heating element 8 (FIG. 1) described in claim 1e.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein fine air bubbles are provided by an air diffuser made up of a flexible micropore hose 5 (FIG. 1). The diffuser hose is made of a thermoset polymer with fine pores ranging in size from 50 to 500 microns. The small size of the pores produces air bubbles approximately 3 mm in diameter. The small bubbles provide high surface area to enhance oxygen exchange between the air bubbles and the fermentation culture. The flexibility of the porous hose allows it to be bent in any configuration and be placed at the bottom of the fermentation chamber or a point near halfway. In both cases, the bubbles provide oxygen while their buoyancy provides full mixing of the fermentation bath. This facilitates contact with the organisms and their nutrients for optimal growth. This method of mixing the contents of the fermentation bath is gentle and free of shear stress. This is important because shear stress causes rupture of cell membranes reducing cell counts. The flexible porous diffuser hose and diffusers made of such porous hose are available from various suppliers in the USA. Most of these models resemble what has been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,811,164, issued Sep. 22, 1998 to Mitchell entitled “AERATION PIPE AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein air is provided by an air pump 6 (FIG. 1) to supply air to the fermentation chamber. The pump is able to provide air from 10% to 400% of the volume of the fermentation bath per minute. That is, a 100-liter chamber can have 10 to 400 liters of air pumped through the diffuser per minute to ensure that enough oxygen enters the chamber. As an alternative, pure oxygen can be apply if desired. The air pump is equipped with a dust filter or a HEPA filter 18 (FIG. 1).

5. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein air filtration to the fermentation chamber is provided by a biological air filter 7 (FIG. 1) to prevent biological contamination from entering the fermentation chamber. The filter is placed between the air pump and the diffuser. The air filtration element is made up of a micropore membrane held in place by any means that allow it to maintain a seal while the air goes through it. One way to keep the membrane in place is to use a clamped connector or a screwable PVC connector union. One or two layers of the filtration membrane can be used if needed. The membrane is as strong as fabric and resists the air pressure from the air pump. The membrane has a pore size of 0.2 microns or less which prevents fungi, bacteria and spores from entering and contaminating the fermentation culture through the air supply. The membrane can be cut to the needed size and several can be autoclaved at the same time. They can be brought to the on-site bioreactor in sterilized autoclaved bags. Each membrane allows air bio-filtration through several cycles of the bioreactor before it is replaced. The membrane is disposable, very economical and easy to replace unlike standard biological air filtration systems. The cost of the micropore membrane is several orders of magnitude lower than standard biological filters which need to be autoclaved and eventually disposed after a few uses. The bacterial filter membrane is made of strong sterilization wrap available from various suppliers in the USA.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein fermentation chamber is heated with a controlled submersible heating element 8 (FIG. 1) with sufficient wattage to allow it to maintain temperature even when the outside environment is very cold even under the freezing point of water. The heating element can be set to a specific temperature mechanically or digitally. The temperature range in the fermentation chamber can be kept between 60 F and 120 F. The specific temperature set depends on the organisms being grown. The wattage of the heating element can range from 2 watts per gallon of the fermenting media to 50 watts per gallon. The higher wattage and overcapacity of the heating element is preferred to ensure that the chamber temperature is maintained because the air pump brings in cold air in very cold or freezing weather. Organisms reproduce themselves very slow in cold temperature (ex. under 59 F) causing low cell counts.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the apparatus has a feed system that stores and feeds the organisms and the nutrients 9 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 3) to grow them in the fermentation chamber 1 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 3). The organisms and the nutrients can be stored and fed in the form of liquid, gel, pellets, granules, flakes, granules, tablets or powder. The preferred method of feeding is through the top of the fermentation chamber. Liquids and gels are fed using low shear pumps to avoid damage of the cell membranes of the organisms. Pellets, flakes, granules, tablets or powder are fed with an auger system 10 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 3) driven by an auger motor 11 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 3). The auger system can be a hanging system (FIG. 3) or a system that delivers the feed from floor level and brings up the feed in an angle (FIG. 1) or straight up vertically to save space (FIG. 2). The outlet of the feed system, whether the feed is driven by pumps or an auger system, has an actuator valve 12 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 3) that keeps the system closed. The valve opens seconds before nutrient and organisms (bacteria, fungi or actinomyces) are fed to the fermentation chamber. Seconds after the feeding system stops, the actuator valve closes. This prevents humidity from the fermentation chamber to enter into the chamber containing the organism and the nutrient blend.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the fermentation chamber and the chamber that stores the organisms in the feed system are painted with a black coat to protect them from ultraviolet radiation from sunlight. A second outer, special coating provides heat-reflection protection from sunlight. Even a constant small amount of ultraviolet radiation from the sun or excessive heat can reduce the number of many species of organisms in the storage-feed chamber and in the fermentation chamber. The heat-reflective coating is composed of ceramic microspheres mixed with a polymer and a white or pastel paint. The low heat conductivity of the coating and its high reflectance of infrared radiation, visible light and ultraviolet frequencies keep the fermentation chamber and the organisms-storage chamber from overheating in hot weather. The coating paint can be purchased from various roofing paint retailers in the United States. Tests were run with the heat reflective coating (FIG. 4). Two identical tanks made of HDPE were evaluated. One tank had coating and the other did not. Both tanks were exposed to direct sunlight, at the same time, for two hours during noon time. Three calibrated thermometers were used. Each sat on an eight-inch tall piece of wood to provide insulation from the heat of the floor. One thermometer was exposed to direct sunlight, another was inside the tank with no coating and the third thermometer was inside the tank with heat reflective coating. The tank with coating was 24 F cooler than the tank with no coating.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the bioreactor system has an optional canopy attached to the platform where the bioreactor system is placed. Such platform can be a pallet or small platform because the system is compact and portable. The pallet is made of wood, plastic or any material with low heat conductivity. The canopy provides additional protection from heat of the sun and ultraviolet radiation. The canopy system is of a design and shape that provides flow of air for cooling and prevents excessive air pressure on the canopy in environments with high winds. The color of the canopy can be a light color that reflects heat or it can be coated by the same type of heat-reflective coating used to coat the storage-feed chamber and the fermentation chamber. As an alternative to the canopy described above, a shed can be used to enclose the bioreactor system. This shed can be made of plastic, wood or any material with low heat conductivity. For additional protection, the shed can be coated with the same heat reflective coating previously described. The shed can have windows to allow airflow or it can rely on the air-conditioning unit 13 (FIG. 1) in claim 1 i) during hot weather.

10. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the system has an option for very hot weather. In this configuration, the bioreactor has a portable air conditioning system 13 (FIG. 1) preset at a temperature between 50° F. to 90° F. and more preferably 65° F. to 80° F. The purpose of the air conditioner is to avoid excessive heat during hot weather. High temperature can cause electronic controls to malfunction. It can also kill organisms in the feed storage chamber and hinder the growth of organisms in the fermentation chamber. The preferred configuration of the air conditioning system is for the cool air to enter the electronic control box 14 (FIG. 1) and exit through an insulated pipe 16 (FIG. 1) into the double wall of the feed chamber or a cooling jacked wrapped around it 15 (FIG. 1) to cool its contents. This extends the shelf-life of the organisms in the feed system 9 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 3) because many species used in the arts lose viable cell counts significantly when exposed to environmental heat. The cool air exits the double wall or cooling jacket of the feed chamber at the point where the inlet 17 (FIG. 1) of the air pump 6 (FIG. 1) takes air to the diffuser 5 (FIG. 1) inside the fermentation chamber. This cool air aids in preventing the fermentation chamber from overheating in hot weather. Excess heat in the fermenter hinders the reproduction and viability of many species. The air conditioning unit has a dust or HEPA filter 18 (FIG. 1) to prevent dust from entering the control box. The air conditioning system can be purchased from Kooltronic in Pennington, N.J.

11. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the water feeding system introduces water into the fermentation chamber. The water can be applied directly from a water-line with a solenoid or actuator valve 3 (FIG. 1). The valve is opened when prompted by a program in the control system 14 (FIG. 1). The valve shuts off when a switch level 19 (FIG. 1) attains a pre-determined level in the fermentation chamber or a water metering devise can be used to apply a predetermined amount of water. On a different embodiment of the apparatus, a water line fills a water storage container. A mechanical level switch can maintain the level in the water storage container. The water is pumped from the container into the fermentation chamber guided by a water metering devise or a switch level in the fermentation chamber can stop water flow when full. The pump is driven by a program in the control system to feed water as needed to the fermentation chamber. The water feed system has an option to use an ultraviolet unit 20 (FIG. 1) on the water line for disinfection and an activated charcoal filter 4 (FIG. 1) to neutralize chlorine or other oxidizers that may be present in the feed water.On a different embodiment of the apparatus, the water feed system can withdraw water from a body of water including, but not limited to, a wastewater source when potable water is not readily available. In this embodiment, a coarse filter and a fine filter precede an ultraviolet disinfecting unit and the activated charcoal unit. This system can clean and disinfect wastewater to make it suitable for the fermenter.

12. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the semi-automatic and automatic configurations are driven by a programmable controller 14 (FIG. 1) with the ability to switch on or off multiple elements such as air pumps, water pumps, heaters, solenoid or actuator valves, ultraviolet disinfecting systems, auger systems and portable air conditioners. The control systems can be purchased from Phenix Controls Inc. in Santa Ana, Calif., which are rated to work at −20° C. to 85° C. The controller is enclosed in a NEMA enclosure type 3 or 4 to protect it from rain, hail or snow. The flexibility of the system allows it to write programs to run the equipment in a batch process, semi-batch process or continuous process as described in claim 1.

13. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein it has an optional spray nozzles or a spray bar 21 (FIG. 1) to rinse the inner walls of the fermentation chamber when the chamber fills with water. Rinsing is often necessary to wash away deposits of nutrients and of organisms at the operating water level of the fermentation chamber. Water may enter the fermentation chamber through spray nozzles or fermentation bar to wash away deposits. Rinsing can be done as the fermentation chamber fills with water or as an additional step when the fermentation chamber is empty to fully clean it and drain the deposits. These deposits contain beneficial microorganisms and are also beneficial to the contaminated environment where they are applied.

14. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein it contains a system to deliver the fermentation culture to the contaminated environment where it will be used. The delivery system consists of a low-shear pump, a solenoid or an actuator valve 22 (FIG. 1) to allow the fermentation broth to be applied to the target environment. The system can be emptied all at once in a batch process running a single fermentation cycle every time. The cycle can be 24 hours or several days depending on the organisms being grown. The system can also be dosed in a semi-batch or continuous manner. In the semi-continuous application, water, nutrients and microorganisms are fed to the fermentation chamber to maintain its volume and high organism concentration while it doses into the contaminated environment or wastewater treatment facility. After a few days of operation, the fermentation chamber completely drains, rinses and begins the process again. In the continuous operation, water, nutrients and organisms are fed to the fermentation chamber to maintain liquid level and high organism concentration while the fermentation broth is dosed. The system continues to work until it is totally drained during maintenance. In very cold environments, the heating element 8 (FIG. 1) can be turned off via the electronic control system a few minutes before the fermentation broth is applied to the environment. In this manner, the organisms adjust to the temperature of the environment before they are applied without suffering a temperature shock. Afterwards, heating can continue in the fermentation chamber if broth remains in it. In a different embodiment of the invention, the broth can exit into the contaminated environment via spray head system 23 (FIG. 1). This is useful when the product is applied to the sewer at a lift station or wet wells. The spray head system allows covering a large area of application to keep equipment, sensors and the lift station walls from building up fat, oil, grease, and other biodegradable debris. Additionally, this application prevents mats of fat, oil, grease, paper and other debris from building up in the wet well, lift stations and manholes.

15. The apparatus of claim one where the wastes in the environment are substrates for the metabolism of the organisms applied. Such environments comprise of wastewater treatment plants such as aerated lagoons, facultative lagoons, anaerobic lagoons, contaminated ocean, oil spills, sludge lagoons or sludge ponds, activated sludge, oxidative ditches, sequential batch reactors, biological contactors, trickling filters, fixed bed reactors, fluidized bed reactors, sewer systems, aerobic digesters and anaerobic digesters. In addition, the environment containing wastes can also be contaminated water bodies such as lakes, lagoons, ponds, rivers, aquaculture systems and ground water. They can also be contaminated water bodies used for recreation, fishing or water reservoirs. Other potential environments are septic tanks, grease traps, contaminated soil, landfills, leachate or composting facilities where the microorganisms applied help speed up the composting process.

16. The apparatus of claim one where the nutrients are inorganic and organic.

17. The apparatus of claim one where the nutrients are selected from a group containing potassium phosphates, sodium phosphates, ammonium phosphates, ammonium chloride, ammonium sulfate, magnesium chloride, magnesium sulfate, ferrous sulfate and ferric chloride.

18. The apparatus of claim 1 where the organic nutrients comprise of various protein or carbohydrate sources such as gelatin, casein, yeast extract, beef extract, molasses, sucrose, dextrose and others known in the art of bioremediation.

19. The apparatus of claim 1 where the organic nutrients include substances similar to the composition of the wastewater being treated to condition the organism to adapt faster to the wastewater components that need to be degraded.

20. The apparatus of claim 1 where the organisms are any bacteria, fungi, actinomyces or biosafety-level one microbes known in the art of bioremediation to treat various environments such as the ones described in claim 15. Remediation includes but it is not limited to the reduction of sludge, fats, oil, grease, odor, hydrogen sulfide, mercaptants, volatile organic acids, pathogens, mosquitoes, flies, ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, phosphorous, heavy metals, pathogens, toxic organic substances and EPA Contaminant Candidates.

21. The apparatus of claim 1 where the formula of the organisms utilized can be customized to the specific substrates that need to be degraded and to thrive in the specific of conditions of the environment such as pH, temperature, nutrient levels, salinity, presence or lack of oxygen. Even if specific toxic components that hinder organisms are present, a formula can be developed that is resistant to the toxins present and degrade them. This customization of the formula is done based on the enzyme profiles of the organisms as well as the temperature, oxygen and pH requirements as well as evaluations to assess resistance to toxic substances that are known by those in the art of bioremediation.

22. The apparatus of claim 1 where the organism concentration in the fermentation culture chamber ranges from 10.sup.6 cfu/ml to 10.sup10 cfu/ml.