Ensuring waste is never wasted

NOV Chopper HopperTM reduces food waste and increased efficiency in a bio-digester process. It is critical for customers in the biogas industry to reduce their waste in a cost-effective, efficient way. While pumping systems are a typical solution for solids reduction, earlier models often do not have the power and speed necessary for more labor-intensive operations. Furthermore, due to the nature of solids reduction and transfer pumping, sometimes two pieces of equipment were necessary to complete one process. Gaec de L'Aurore, an agricultural farm group in the east of France, indicated a need for significant reductions in waste from their cantines, supermarkets, and bakeries into the bio-digester process.

Solution Chopper Hopper

Recognizing an opportunity to improve Gaec de L'Aurore's operation with an innovative solution, we introduced our Chopper Hopper™, a powerful and aggressive pump that combined grinding and pumping in a single, compact operation. The Chopper Hopper unites a prebreaker, EZstrip™ progressing cavity pump, and EZstrip TR muncher for improved performance in solids handling and bulk reduction for the food and beverage industry. The Chopper Hopper homogenizes objects like whole fruits and vegetables into pumpable purée or mash, with up to three stages of solids reduction available for coarse, medium, and fine particle size. Multiple cutter designs and construction materials allow customers to tailor the Chopper Hopper to their specifications, ensuring it meets the needs of each application. The design of the unit also allows for low friction of the universal pin-joint, leading to less wear and better overall performance, while cutter shafts and pump internals can be easily disassembled, reducing maintenance-related downtime.

Background

It is critical for customers in the biogas industry to reduce their waste in a cost-effective, efficient way. While pumping systems are a typical solution for solids reduction, earlier models often do not have the power and speed necessary for more labor-intensive operations. Furthermore, due to the nature of solids reduction and transfer pumping, sometimes two pieces of equipment were necessary to complete one process. Gaec de L'Aurore, an agricultural farm group in the east of France, indicated a need for significant reductions in waste from their cantines, supermarkets, and bakeries into the bio-digester process.

They required 95% of their solids to achieve a size smaller than 12 mm in two directions, an objective that was achieved after implementing the Chopper Hopper.

Results
• A minimum of 95% of solids were smaller than 12 mm in two directions
•Increased maximum capacity of the equipment to 1.2 tons per hour