Resources

Why Choose STI Waste Treatment Systems

Our commercial medical treatment systems are field proven to provide the industry’s lowest operating cost, obtained through completely automated continuous operation (no batch processing) and sustainable steam treatment of medical waste.

Our technology is utilized on a global basis to inactivate a range of waste streams including regulated medical, pharmaceutical, infectious, anatomical, crop science, animal research and path lab. Our equipment’s unique ability to run continuous cycles, combined with a wide range of capacity, options and configurations, results in an engineered solution to meet our customer requirements.

Cut Disposal Costs

• Total ownership and operating costs average $0.10-$0.12 per pound, as opposed to three times this amount for third-party hauling and treatment.
• Annual savings, in many cases, pay for the system in one year.
• Control your future costs without worry about waste processing price increases.
• Best warranty in the industry (2-Years with PM Agreement included).
• Proven technology with over two billion pounds processed in STI Waste Treatment Systems worldwide.
• Using STI SmarTec™ remote access support, equipment notifies users and BioSAFE Engineering if needs arise.

Economics

• Our system operates on low-pressure steam (less than 15 PSI) and consumes very small amounts of this steam.
• BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems incorporates nothing but the most heavy duty, reliable shredders in each of our systems. Typical users do not have to perform major maintenance until the shredder has throughput between 2-3 million pounds of waste, providing simple periodic maintenance like oil changes are performed at prescribed schedules.
• The waste that exits the system has no free liquids and is very dry and lightweight. This converts to economy at the landfill.
• Because the system is a continuous feed system and not a batch system, there is no need to employ FTEs or store waste between cycles. The equipment is ready and waiting for more waste, unlike the competitive system which is always tied-up and causes the operator to wait.
• Customers may use the same equipment to treat both general refuse and medical waste in heavy-duty commercial operation.
• No full-time operator is required to run the system, saving your company on labor costs. Minimal operator training is required.

Hospitals, Agricultural, Research and Production Facilities

• Our treatment systems may be installed outdoors at a loading dock or indoors if you prefer.
• Eliminate labor associated with off-site transportation of waste (no boxing, labeling, manifesting and double handling of infectious waste), lowering risk of exposure.
• Operate STI Waste Treatment Systems equipment under permit by rule in your state. Reference state-by-state regulations for more information.
• Integral shredding assures efficacy under all circumstances.

Commercial Treatment Facilities

• Stop transporting and brokering waste to other treatment facilities.
• Remove the “middle man” approach and pocket the profits for your company.
• BioSAFE Engineering support is unsurpassed during the permitting and implementation process.

Landfill Avoidance through Gasification of Final Product

BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems is laying the groundwork to redirect the treated waste from historical landfill disposal to recycling alternatives.

• At one-third the associated disposal cost of medical waste treatment, we are developing a long-term, low operating cost alternative to landfill via recycling of treated medical waste.
• STI Waste Treatment System output has been tested and approved for the Vadxx process.
• Gain a public image benefit from landfill avoidance.

Partnership with Operators (PWO)

A low up-front capital program makes the cost of ownership competitive with any other technology available.

• Healthcare environmental service organizations can focus on their own strengths – providing healthcare to the general public.
• Asset service life, efficiency and uptime reside in the hands of BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems.
• Long-term, stable disposal pricing becomes a real possibility.

STI: Features and Benefits

BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems technology outperforms all other medical waste processing options on the market today. View features and benefits of our products for full details.

Our medical waste system has all the attributes and none of the drawbacks of existing hospital waste treatment products on the market. The first BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems unit was installed in August of 1993. The combined systems have processed over 800,000,000 lbs. of regulated medical waste, hospital waste, infectious waste and commercial waste. The residue from BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems units is safe, generally classified as municipal waste and ready for landfill disposal.

Medical Waste Treatment Technology Features Comparison

STI Waste Treatment Systems have the proven lowest industry operating cost, obtained through completely automated continuous operation (no batch processing) and sustainable steam treatment of medical waste.

Medical Waste Treatment Technology Limitations Comparison

STI FAQs

Does the STI Waste Treatment System comply with regulations for RMW treatment?

Yes. If your regulators issue approval letters, we will provide a copy for your files.

Do I need to apply for a permit to use the system on-site at one or more of my facilities?

Yes. Normally, the user must apply for permits to operate the system on-site. STI will work with your facility to obtain the necessary permits.

Will I have any off-site hauling needs with the use of the STI?

Yes. It will still be necessary to haul away Chemotherapeutic waste. You may also want to haul away pathological waste for perception purposes. Normally, both of these types of combined waste amount to 0.5% of the total Regulated Medical Waste stream.

Does the system require a full-time operator to feed the waste into the system manually?

No. Typically, the environmental service employees will roll the cart into the machine, push one button, and walk away. It is that simple.

How much chemical (Sodium Hypochlorite – Bleach) is used in the system, and does it have a negative impact on the environment?

Each time the unit dumps a waste cart, a very small (ml) amount of bleach and water is sprayed into the cart dumper. The use of bleach in the system is approved by the USEPA, FIFRA branch for compliance with the USEPA standards, and does not have a negative impact on the environment.

What is the source that treats the waste in the STI system?

The waste is exposed to 215°-240°F direct steam for at least one hour.

Does the STI Waste Treatment System require expensive autoclave bags?

No. The equipment shreds both the waste and the waste containers. We recommend that you use the least expensive, compliant bags available.

Can the unit be installed and operated outdoors in the extreme heat or cold?

Yes. The STI unit may be installed indoors or outdoors. In areas where freezing is a concern, the STI system heat-traces and insulates the plumbing interconnections that are exposed to the cold temperature.

What is the life expectancy of the cutters in the shredder?

BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems estimates the cutters to last between two to three million pounds of throughput. This is unheard of in our industry. Once the cutters wear out, they are easy to replace.

What is the useful life of the STI Waste Treatment System?

The system’s life expectancy depends on how well the unit is maintained. There isn’t much maintenance, but keeping the machine clean and serviced will certainly extend its life. Rather than give an estimated life expectancy in years, we like to think in terms of throughput. To date, the oldest single system (installed in 1993) has processed well over 2 billion pounds of waste.

How do I know if my facility has the proper utility and space requirements for a unit from BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems?

BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems has a full staff of engineers dedicated to answering these questions for you, and we are able to provide you with conceptual drawings and solutions. If you would like to see what the system will look like installed at your facility, just let us know.

How do I maintain the unit once it is installed?

BioSAFE Medical Waste Systems provides detailed operator and maintenance training after each installation. In addition to this, we offer service contracts for routine maintenance, as well as a customer service staff that is on-hand 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our engineers are able to monitor your STI unit and make program changes from our Indianapolis headquarters so that you receive immediate attention.

Can I use the STI system to destroy confidential HIPPA documents?

Yes. The STI is commonly used to shred confidential records instead of hiring a mobile service for this purpose.

Effluent Decontamination System: How It Works

What are Effluent Decontamination Systems?

Effluent Decontamination Systems (EDS) are required to treat all laboratory wastewater and effluent produced within biocontainment facilities. This effluent typically originates from the laboratory sinks, showers, floor drains, and autoclaves.

Effluent Decontamination Systems are recommended, and/or required by law, across the world for facilities classified as Bio-safety Level 3 and Level 4 (BSL-3 and 4).

How do Effluent Decontamination Systems Work?

EDS systems use a combination of heat and pressure to ensure that any potentially dangerous microbiological agents in the effluent are destroyed before release to the public sewer.

Where are EDS Systems Located?

Typically EDS systems are located in sub-contained basement areas directly below the laboratories which they serve. This allows for a gravity flow into the system which minimizes any further intermediate equipment. In some cases, where it is not possible to gravity feed the EDS system, a collection tank is incorporated.

Continuous or Continuous-Batch Process

BioSAFE Effluent Decon Systems can operate as continuous or as a continuous-batch process, the latter of which is the chosen standard for our systems due to the inherent safety control and containment advantages.

Alkaline Hydrolysis

BioSAFE Life Sciences has worked for years on this front with Alkaline Hydrolysis used in converting potential infectious waste tissue into the sterile effluent. But we also produce stand-alone EDS for other effluent streams from life science facilities.

We offer a wide selection of configurations and capacities and are designed to treat thousands of gallons per day. BioSAFE’s Effluent Decon Systems can be sized for any facility from a single laboratory room to a large multi-user facility. We also offer a unique “prion cycle” feature, incorporating our patented Alkaline Hydrolysis technology, for the safe disposal of potentially TSE infected effluent.

Tissue Digestion vs. Incineration

Tissue Digestion

In Tissue Digestion (alkaline hydrolysis), all tissues and carcasses are placed in a pressure vessel and the vessel is sealed before the process begins. Tissue Digesters are loaded from the top through an opening that is equal to the diameter of digestion vessel. For small- and medium-sized digesters, an internal basket is preloaded and then lifted into the vessel with an integral hoist. For large-sized vessels, suitable for multiple equine or bovine carcasses, whole carcasses are lowered onto a tray in the vessel from an overhead crane (customer or BioSAFE Engineering provided). Thus, Tissue Digesters are easy to load.

For the digestion process, the tissue/carcass load is weighed automatically by load cells on which the vessel is mounted, alkali and water are added in precise proportion to the weight of tissue, and the system is heated to a specified operating temperature and held there for a specified time. Agitation in the system, necessary for appropriate exposure of all material to the alkali solution, is achieved by constant circulation of the digestion fluid.

The carcasses are solubilized (liquefied) within the first 30 minutes of the digestion cycle and hydrolysis of proteins, fats, and nucleic acids begins immediately on the solubilized material. Alkaline hydrolysis destroys all known pathogens. It is the only process demonstrated to destroy the infectivity of tissues contaminated with the agents causing Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (Mad Cow disease, CJD, etc.).

Alkaline hydrolysis is a true batch process. The Tissue Digester is sealed during operation. At the end of the process, the liquid effluent is a sterile, EPA neutral solution of amino acids, small peptides, sugars and soaps that may be released to a sanitary sewer. Since KOH is used as the alkali, the liquid effluent is an excellent fertilizer that may be broadcast or injected into the soil.

Carcass volume and weight reduction exceed 97%.

After processing, both the effluent and all internal parts of the digestion system are sterile. All wetted parts of the Tissue Digester system are 316L stainless steel. The vessel is insulated for greater efficiency and operator safety. The shell of the Tissue Digester is also stainless steel and all exposed electrical parts are NEMA 4 compliant, facilitating external cleanup and making the whole system hosable, if necessary.

The only residue remaining after digestion is the inorganic material (pure calcium phosphate) of bones and teeth. This may be landfilled or used as sterile bone meal fertilizer. Materials that may enter the system with the carcasses, such as gloves, catheters, and instruments, are also sterilized and may be treated as ordinary waste.

In a Tissue Digester, most toxins associated with the carcasses are destroyed, no new toxins (such as dioxins from incompletely oxidized plastics) are produced, and heavy metals are not concentrated; rather, they are diluted by the release of the nearly 75% of the animal that is water.

The Tissue Digester automatically cools the fluid in the vessel to a temperature at which it is safe to release it to a sanitary sewer. The operator is not exposed to hot materials.

A Tissue Digester operates at between $0.03 to $0.06 per pound of tissue processed, a fraction of the cost of operating an incinerator. A Tissue Digester is designed to last much longer than an incinerator, with less maintenance.

There is no smokestack, there are no air emissions, and there are no applicable EPA air quality regulations.

Incineration

Incinerators come in many forms. Pathological incinerators, with secondary gas retention chambers of 2 seconds retention time (no scrubbers currently required) are discussed here.

The basic pathological incinerator is a stuff and burn system, with a side-fed door. This type of system is difficult to feed, particularly if large animals are to be processed. Carcasses have to be dissected or butchered to provide pieces small enough to fit through the feed door and these pieces may be heavy, difficult, and potentially dangerous to handle. Pathologic incinerators are available with a top load, large door but this adds considerably to the cost and is usually still not adequately sized for whole equine, bovine, or porcine carcasses. Some units are available with a top-fed ram that loads tissues into the side door of the burn chamber. Again, however, large animals must be quartered or further cut up before loading into the hopper of the ram.

An incinerator is not a true batch system because air goes in and air flows out constantly during the processing cycle which can violate the concept of a “contained area”. In addition, most incinerators must be operated by adding more tissue as the burn progresses in order to meet the throughput requirements of the institution.

Ram feed systems become contaminated and remain that way, they are not easily cleanable.

Incineration also achieves significant volume reduction, up to 97%, but toxins and heavy metals are concentrated in the incinerator ash, yielding a residue that is usually classified as toxic waste. Toxins, including dioxins, halogenated hydrocarbons, and mercury vapor are produced by the combustion process and are released through the stack into the atmosphere.

Destruction of pathogens by incineration is only as good as the least burned material remaining in the bottom of the combustion chamber. Unburned “material” is often found in the ashes as they are raked out and must be returned to the chamber, putting the operator at risk. It has been shown that TSE agents are NOT destroyed by conventional incineration or by heating to as much as 600°C under controlled conditions. The need for a reliable, simple method for destruction of TSE agents is imperative as more contaminated wildlife, ungulates, and zoo animals are turning up in the US.

The cost of operating a pathologic incinerator ranges from $0.025 to $0.75 per pound, depending on the age of the unit, natural gas costs, and the frequent repair and maintenance needed on these systems.

Operators are exposed to dust, heat, and toxic gases while running an incinerator.

There is a smokestack with visible output, toxic emissions are produced, and incinerators are subject to increasingly stringent clean air regulations.

Incineration has the ability to contaminate not only the air we breathe, but also ground water, soil, livestock, and Humans through the emissions emitted from the smokestack.

Tissue Disposal System Summary

A Tissue Digester system is complete on installation. No preprocessing or post-processing equipment must be added for convenience of operation or to meet clean air regulations.

A Tissue Digester is a non-polluting, environmentally-friendly, more efficient method of waste decontamination and tissue disposal as compared to incineration.

Loading mid-size to large animal carcasses is ergonomically-friendly since the carcasses can be loaded from the top, in their entirety, un-sectioned.

For BSL3 and BSL4 bio-containment applications, the Tissue Digester is far more adaptable to work-flow considerations in laboratory design thus making a Tissue Digester system more desirable:

• Horizontal or Vertical Designs for ease of loading various size carcasses from small rodents, primates, and large animals
• Double-door pass-through configurations allow infectious material to be processed from the BSL3 or BSL4 containment area.
• Biocontainment Seals provided on Tissue Digester systems prevent cross-contamination on double door units and provide a true bio-barrier as compared to pass-through incinerator models.
• The Tissue Digester is a sealed, closed-loop system while the incinerator is not.
• Alkaline Hydrolysis provides a higher level of efficacy since exposure of the infectious waste to time and temperature can be controlled precisely.
• A guaranteed higher level of efficacy can be attained using Alkaline Hydrolysis since the process utilizes both thermal and chemical sterilization principles.

The Tissue Digester is much less costly to own and operate over the long term when maintenance and yearly air pollution permits are considered in the yearly operating costs.

Alkaline Hydrolysis eliminates the potential to expose the attendants to pathogens, toxins, and other types of hazardous waste as compared to incineration.

While the installation of a Tissue Digester may be slightly more expensive than a basic pathologic incinerator of comparable capacity, the environmental “greening” aspects of Alkaline Hydrolysis technology and the ability to provide a higher level of efficacy far out-weigh the old, pollution-generating, inexact methods of the past.

Alkaline Hydrolysis Deep Dive

Chemistry of the Alkaline Hydrolysis Process

Alkaline hydrolysis is a process whereby chemical bonds are broken by the insertion of water between the atoms in the bond. Alkaline hydrolysis can be catalyzed by enzymes, metal salts, acids, or bases. Bases are typically water solutions of alkali metal hydroxides such as sodium hydroxide (NaOH) or potassium hydroxide (KOH). Heating the reactants dramatically accelerates the hydrolysis reaction.

The process thus destroys all of these classes of compounds, reducing them to their building blocks and, in some cases, degrading them even further into smaller molecules. All proteins, regardless of their origin, are destroyed during the alkaline hydrolysis process.

Amino acids are linked to each other in a peptide (amide) bond in which the carboxyl group of one amino acid is condensed to the amino group of another amino acid with the elimination of water. The resulting polymer is called a polypeptide or protein. All polypeptides consist primarily of the elements carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen, along with smaller amounts of other elements, mainly sulfur and phosphorous. Alkaline hydrolysis reverses the condensation of amino acids into proteins by the acid- or alkali-catalyzed breaking of the peptide bonds and the addition of water at the break.

Infectious Waste

The process destroys all pathogens listed as index organisms by the State and Territorial Association on Alternative Treatment Technologies (see STAATT I [April 1994] and STAATT II [December 1998] reports) and to be recommended in the new STAATT III Guidelines [2006]. The STAATT guidelines call for a system to be able to prove efficacy in the destruction of infectious agents by producing a 6 log10 reduction in vegetative infectious agents and a 4 log10 reduction in spore-forming agents. While each state has its own regulations for approving alternative treatment technologies for regulated medical waste, most of them are derived from or equivalent to the STAATT guidelines.

In the case of one category of disease agents – prions (which are proteins that do not consist of living cells) – the alkaline hydrolysis process has been specifically approved in EU legislation for the treatment of Mad Cow disease and other “Category 1” (TSE transmissible spongiform encephalopathy) wastes, in addition to approval for use with Categories 2 and 3 wastes in Europe.

The same process has been used for years for prion waste as laboratory waste decontamination systems for USDA laboratories and has been cited as an acceptable method of prion waste treatment in USDA and EPA regulations. Recently the US EPA determined that prions were to be treated as “pests” under the Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); our systems are registered under FIFRA.

Indigestible Materials

Paper, string, undigested plant fibers and wood shavings (bedding) are among the cellulose-based items that may be associated with animal carcasses but are not digestible by alkaline hydrolysis. Rubber, most plastics, ceramics and stainless steel (catheters, needles, clips, and staples) also cannot be digested by alkaline hydrolysis, although silk and collagen sutures, which are protein in nature are rapidly digested. However, the indigestible materials are completely sterilized by the BioSAFE Engineering process. They can be removed from the basket of the Tissue Digester and disposed of as ordinary waste at a sanitary landfill, with appropriate treatment of any sharps.

Radioactive Materials

Among the most difficult biological wastes to deal with are tissues and carcasses that have been generated in biomedical and pharmaceutical research and contain minute amounts of radioactive isotopes that had been injected into animals to study cell and tissue function, drug localization and metabolism, and toxin localization.

To meet Federal and state regulations for disposal of solid LLRBW, whole carcasses of small animals must be packed in lime and an adsorbent, then sealed in a 30-gallon can. The 30-gallon cans hold approximately 25 kg of animal carcasses. Each 30-gallon can must then be packed in a 55-gallon drum, also filled with adsorbent, and shipped to a licensed low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) burial site. There are only two such sites currently operating in the United States. The cost of shipping and burying each 55-gallon drum containing the can of radioactive carcasses is currently nearly $200 per kilogram.

In contrast, to the disposal process described above, our process converts animal tissues and carcasses from solid low-level radioactive biological waste (LLRBW) to an aqueous solution that is suitable for release to a sanitary sewer under 10CFR20 and derivative state regulations and does so at a cost of $0.07-$0.13 per kilogram.

Operating Costs

The operating costs per pound of material processed can range due to local input factors. The process requires operator labor, electricity, chemical, steam, water, amortized maintenance, and disposal fees. For up-front investigation and planning purposes, we recommend that clients use $0.10 to $0.20 per pound as an operating cost estimate.

Depending upon the nature of the material being processed, this amount compares favorably with incineration and special landfill operating disposal. These alternative costs can range anywhere from $0.25 to greater than $1.00 per pound. At a client’s request, our engineers are happy to help construct very exacting operating cost estimates based on the size of the machine to be employed and local utility factors.