NEI Treatment Systems is engaged in a number of private- and government-funded research efforts. In February 2002, engineering design and development of the Venturi Oxygen Stripping™ began. Refinement and improvement of the system is on-going.

In March 2003, through a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Maritime Administration (MARAD) Sea Grant Program, the University of Maryland's Chesapeake Biological Laboratory began testing the ability of the Venturi Oxygen Stripping™ system to kill or inactivate harmful microscopic aquatic organisms. Lab-scale testing has proven the system very effective. In March 2004, testing began on a 300 cubic meter per hour system (right photograph) to evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment at high flow rates. This version is identical to the equipment used in a shipboard system.

Results of testing show the system is able to meet the IMO standards.

NEI's first shipboard system was installed in October 2004. Test results are published on this web site. Go to biology for test data

NEI's 300 m³/hr Pilot System

All land-based biological testing was conducted by the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory (CBL) of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. Shipboard trials were conducted by a team of scientists from CBL and the Marine Invasions Research Laboratory of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, a U.S. Federal Government Laboratory. This testing was funded entirely by grants from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as part of the U.S. Ballast Water Technology Demonstration Program.

Please feel free to review the most recent peer-reviewed independent research paper summarizing the grant-funded evaluation of NEI's technology.

DISCLAIMER: The above-linked reasearch paper was originally presented at 2005 SNAME Maritime Technology Conference and Expo. Reprinted with the permission of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME). Material originally appearing in SNAME publications cannot be reprinted without written permission from the Society, 601 Pavonia Ave., Jersey City, NJ 07306.

NRL Corrosion Test Equipment (during assembly)

In April 2003, the Naval Research Laboratory began a detailed examination of the effects of Venturi Oxygen Stripping™ on corrosion of mild steel. This research was conducted at the Navy's Center for Corrosion Science and Engineering facility in Key West, FL. In addition, BMT Fleet Technology is conducting a similar study to evaluate the corrosion protection aspect of Venturi Oxygen Stripping TM . Results of this testing will be published on this web site.

NEI and its teaming partners are currently applying for additional research grant funding through the Great Lakes Fisheries Commission, the International Ship Structures Committee, the California State Lands Commission, and NOAA Sea Grant.