Benefits that make a Measurable Difference
In Your Facility
Lower Cost of Ownership
Tissue digesters operate between $0.03 to $0.06 per pound of tissue processed — a fraction of the cost of operating an incinerator.
Safety from Exposure
As a sealed, closed-loop system, our tissue digesters provide superior protection for operators versus incineration, reducing the threat of exposure to infectious agents and other hazardous waste.
Reduced Disposal
Our patented alkaline hydrolysis process converts animal, human and microbial tissues into a sterile, neutral, aqueous solution suitable for disposal to a sanitary sewer. Any leftover waste, such as animal bones and teeth, is suitable for landfills.
In Our Environment
Safety at Scale
Over two billion pounds of laboratory and medical waste have been processed using BioSAFE systems worldwide.
People Friendly
Destruction of pathogens by incineration leaves unburned “material” in the ashes, putting operators at risk.
Eco-Friendly
Our patented alkaline hydrolysis process converts animal, human and microbial tissues into a sterile, neutral, aqueous solution suitable for disposal to a sanitary sewer. Any leftover waste, such as animal bones and teeth, is suitable for landfills.
Critical Applications
Prion research: mad cow, chronic wasting disease, scrapie
Foot-and-mouth virus
Biological warfare agents like anthrax, bacteria, rickettsiae, fungi, viruses, toxins
Bio-engineered products, recombinant DNA organisms, and recombinant molecules
Human and animal byproducts, including stem cells, tissue, urine, blood, carcasses, and more
Biological sludge from waste-water treatment plants
Liquid or solid waste contaminated with biological agents
Infectious agents
Contaminated water from autoclaves and washers
Aldehyde-containing fixatives and embalming fluids
Toxins including cytotoxins
Proteins, lipids, carbohydrates
Low-level radioactive, biological waste
Recommended Solutions
Effluent Decontamination Systems (EDS)
BioSAFE’s class-leading Effluent Decontamination Systems responsibly treat waste streams generated by laboratories and other life science facilities. Our standalone systems use chemical, thermal, batch and continuous-flow processes to neutralize harmful effluent streams, protecting public health and the environment.
Learn more about our custom designs with your needs in mind.
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Tissue
Digesters
BioSAFE’s patented alkaline hydrolysis technology is designed for the world’s most hazardous, infectious, and critical disposal challenges, converting potential infectious waste tissue into sterile effluent. Our equipment is in service worldwide, from non-containment sites to highly infectious BSL-3 (Ag) and BSL-4 laboratories. Available in configurations for nearly every capacity from 5 to 10,000 pounds a cycle.
Learn more about our eco-friendly alternative to incineration, including our popular Lab-5 model.
See MoreTissue Digestion vs. Incineration
In Tissue Digestion (alkaline hyrolysis), all tissues and carcasses are placed in a pressure vessel and the vessel is sealed before the process begins.
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%.
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.
Incinerators come in many forms. Pathological incinerators, with secondary gas retention chambers of 2 seconds retention time (no scrubbers currently required) are reviewed below.
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.
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.
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.
Mobile Chemical Effluent Disposal System
Find out how BioSAFE engineers addressed a catastrophic flood at a major government BSL-3 and -4 research facility with a deployable chemical effluent disposal system.
