In celebration of Global Recycling Day, ISS Flowthrough is proud to showcase our bubble barriers. Our technology can help reduce plastic pollution in our waterways and contribute to the planet’s recycling efforts. This special day serves as a reminder of the importance of recycling and its positive impacts on the environment. With ISS Flowthrough bubble barriers, we are striving towards a more sustainable future and working towards cleaner, healthier waterways.
The goal of Global Recycling Day is to make recycling a global priority. This day emphasises the need for a coordinated global approach to recycling. It encourages people to recognise the value of recycled materials and resources, and to think about how to minimise waste. On this day, individuals and organisations around the world are asked to raise awareness of the importance of recycling. The hope is that by highlighting the importance of recycling, we can create a cleaner, healthier planet for future generations.
How does plastic pollution affect our oceans?
Each year, an estimated 300 million tons of plastic are manufactured and used to make single-use items. These include products such as shopping bags, cups and straws. If these items are not properly disposed of, plastic waste has the potential to cause significant harm to the environment. Unfortunately, at least 14 million tons of plastic enter the ocean annually, making up the majority of all marine debris. Plastic litter can be found on the coastlines of every continent. More plastic waste is seen in popular tourist spots and highly populated locations.
The devastating effects of plastic pollution on the marine environment are widely known. Sources of plastic debris in the ocean come from both land-based and ocean-based activities. Land-based sources include urban and storm water runoff, littering, inadequate waste disposal and illegal dumping to name a few. Ocean-based sources are primarily associated with the fishing industry. These pollutants pose a significant threat to ocean health, marine species and food quality, as well as our own health.
How do ISS Flowthrough bubble barriers help?
The ISS Flowthrough Bubble Barrier is groundbreaking technology that efficiently captures and removes plastic pollution from water sources. With this innovative technology, we are leading the effort to protect our waterways from plastic contamination. The ISS Flowthrough Bubble Barrier is the first technology of its kind to use a bubble curtain to capture and remove plastic pollution from rivers, lakes, and waterways.
ISS Flowthrough bubble barriers create an upward current of bubbles that directs debris and litter to the surface, allowing it to be collected and removed for recycling. The ISS Flowthrough bubble barrier is designed to be placed diagonally across the river which helps in pushing plastic waste to the side. This reduces downstream movement and ensures minimal interference with recreational activities.
Why choose ISS Flowthrough bubble barriers over other companies and solutions?
The traditional bubble barrier approach is to use a weighted perforated hose with a low volume air supply usually in the maximum range of 0.95 to 1.39 m3/min/m. This creates a relatively weak barrier and may require multiple barriers to create a strong enough barrier effect. The density of the bubbles within the barrier using traditional bubble curtain hose is limited.
Typically, there are around 153 holes per metre to generate the bubbles. This may be
contrasted with a ISS Flowthrough diffuser curtain which has around 20,000 holes /m, which
therefore creates a denser, more robust and vigorous barrier of bubbles.
Our Design
ISS Flowthrough bubble barriers, created using rubber membrane type diffusers, can effectively create a much denser and more effective bubble curtain that may operate over a much wider range of air volume flows. This allows for more flexibility in the design, ensuring it can be tailored to meet the requirements of each specific site.
Other companies do not use this approach due to the almost impossible task of ensuring an even distribution of air across the length of the bubble barrier’s diffusers. The ISS Flowthrough airflow regulation system allows this air distribution across a diffuser –based bubble curtain to be overcome and therefore means that effective bubble barriers can be designed to meet the specific characteristics of each site regardless of depth, width and bed profile.
There are other plastic pollution solutions (such as litter traps and booms) available. Our system is the only one able to cover the full width and depth of a waterway without having a negative impact on wildlife or recreational activities. ISS Flowthrough bubble barriers can be customised to any waterway, making it unique in this field. Bubbles can also have a positive impact on ecosystem as they increase the level of dissolved oxygen in the water, making it highly beneficial for aquatic life.
Previous Projects
ISS Flowthrough were commissioned by CRT to design , manufacture and install a bubble barrier on the River Lea. The basis of the design is to provide an angled bubble barrier that directs floating and submerged litter and debris into a collection point on the north side of the River Lea Navigation Channel. The system will reduce downstream litter and facilitate collection by CRT staff from a single collection point, whilst presenting no interference with boat movements.
You can read the full summary of our River Lea Bubble Barrier in the Projects section of our website.