Contact Information:
M.A.R.S Bio-Med Processes Inc
Mercury Amalgam Removal Systems
59 Welland Vale Rd
First Floor
St. Catherines
ON
Canada
L2S 3Y2
Tel 905 682 3795
Fax 905 682 6963

In the USA
1051 Clinton Street
Buffalo
NY 14206
Tel 716 853 3703
Fax 716 852 0136

CATALOGUE:

#03­026/04­018

The M.A.R.S. AmalgamBOSS is sold by M.A.R.S (Mercury Amalgam Recovery Systems) Bio-Med Processes Inc for removal of mercury from dental office wastewater (Figure 1). It is a single, portable, detached unit, capable of handling a flow rate of 9 IGPM (34 L/min) while treating discharges from up to 6 dental operatories. Annual servicing is the norm; more than 6 operatories requires semi-annual servicing. The AmalgamBOSS is made of Medial PE-LLD and is quiet, compact with dimensions: 12.5 inch diameter and 21 inches high. It is installed upstream of the vacuum pump, and requires no electrical power on its own. Because it has the highest industry standard fittings, it is anticipated that the unit will not have impact on the integrity of the vacuum system. It can be wall or floor mounted. Due to its self-contained design, regular service maintenance can be carried out in minutes.

The Canada Wide Standard, promulgated by Environment Canada, requires 95% removal of mercury-from dental amalgam releases (from 2005, compared to the baseline of 2000) OR compliance with ISO 11143 (which requires 95% removal of amalgam particles < 3150 microns and > 1 micron). The AmalgamBOSS exceeded the ISO 11143 standard - by removal of 99% of the influent amalgam

solids greater than 1 micron (tested and certified in Germany in 2004). The AmalgamBOSS is therefore approved for sale in North America and Europe in locations where the ISO certification is mandatory for an amalgam removal unit installed in dental offices. Provincial authorities are responsible for enforcing the Canada Wide Standard, and, in addition, municipal authorities have their own individual Sewer Use Bylaws. Discharge limits to sanitary sewers are based on concentration rather than percent removal.

The AmalgamBOSS was verified by ETV Canada in 2005. Verification testing was performed on the ARU-10, an earlier model of the amalgam removal unit, which was found by the ETV Canada Verification Entity to be a technical equivalent to the AmalgamBOSS, for its capability of amalgam removal.

Figure 1: AmalgamBOSS Dental Amalgam Separator

(1) The ARU10 and the Amalgam Boss can with 95% confidence remove at least 95% of the mercury amalgam in a dental operative waste-stream (meeting the Canada-Wide Standard on Mercury for Dental Amalgam Waste, the performance standards defined by ISO 11143 and the Canada Wide Standard target of 95 % national reduction in mercury from dental amalgam waste by 2005 from a base year of 2000)
(2) In accordance with the loadings in the ARU10 test plan of October 23 2003, the three^b ARU10 technologies produced effluents with Hg concentration below 31, 28 and 51 ppb, with at least 95% confidence.

Dental operatories discharge mercury and water contaminated with biomaterial when performing amalgam extraction or insertion procedures. Mercury, being a Canadian Environmental Protection Act toxic, must therefore be trapped (as particles and in the aqueous form) before being discharged to the sewer. The AmalgamBOSS is designed for the removal of both solid and aqueous mercury from the dental office effluent. The vacuum pump draws wastewater through the chairside trap first, then through the AmalgamBOSS, ensuring that waste mercury is safely contained for later collection and recycling or disposal. Sanitary sewer discharge limits in various municipalities require compliance which can only be attained by installation of amalgam removal units that are capable of meeting these specifications. This requirement exceeds the scope of the ISO 11143 certification as well as the Canada Wide

Table 1: Comparison of Regulatory Standards for Mercury Amalgam Separators

Standard. (See Table 1), both of which require a relative standard with respect to mass removal, whereas the sewer use bylaws specify an absolute standard with respect to concentration. The AmalgamBOSS, when operated upstream of the typical wet vacuum pump can meet municipal sanitary sewer use bylaws. The second part of the ETV Canada performance verification claim shows its removal capability for total mercury.

The AmalgamBOSS is designed with various treatment steps for removing mercury amalgam. (See Figure 2) These three processes are, in order of sequence - a settling chamber, a chelation material / activated carbon chamber and a fine micron screen. Solid and liquid effluent exit from the restoration area of the dental operatory. Drawn by the vacuum, and after passing through the chairside trap, the vacuum air / wastewater enters into the expansion chamber within the AmalgamBOSS. The vacuum air exits through a special channel into the vacuum pump, so mercury vapour is not exhausted into the office air. Within the expansion chamber is a settling tank where bulk amalgam settles out, and the holding time in the chamber controls the amount of material in the sediment. The AmalgamBOSS can store 8 litres of wastewater safely. Particles settle out in the chamber and the water component of the waste is allowed to spill over a lip into the next treatment stage. The media bed in the AmalgamBOSS is mercury adsorption specific, and is able to remove the soluble mercury not captured in the settling chamber. The micron filter after the media bed ensures no media is lost during the wastewater passage. To ensure even better removal of amalgam fines, the final stage micron filter adds this final treatment stage to the exiting wastewater. The low pressure performance of the vacuum is maintained due to the AmalgamBOSS having the

industry's widest internal and external fittings. As a benefit of treating the wastewater, in addition to environmental protection, preventing mercury amalgam reaching the vacuum pump ensures longer life of the vacuum pump through reduced wear.

Although it is unlikely the unit will overfill, the translucent body of the AmalgamBOSS enables the user to visually check the level of accumulated waste. At the time of maintenance, the whole AmalgamBOSS is a self-contained amalgam waste recycling canister for pick up by local State or Province-approved hazardous waste transportation companies. This reduces costs as there are no additional special recycling containers to buy.

M.A.R.S Bio-Med Processes Inc. manufactures the AmalgamBOSS in St Catherines, Ontario, Canada. Its amalgam separator technology configuration is a result of research and development work exclusively in Canada.

The Company has distribution agreements with major North American suppliers to the dental office market.

M.A.R.S Bio-Med Processes Inc. is a "dentalECOsolutions" company marketing a range of dental office products. Biofilm and bacterial build-up in dental lines becomes a challenge in all dental offices, and their product "PowerLinz" is a powerful yet safe and biodegradeable evacuation line cleaner made especially to accommodate the lengthy periods between service maintenance for the AmalgamBOSS unit. M.A.R.S Bio-Med Processes Inc. has offices in both Canada and the USA.

OCETA
2070 Hadwen Drive, Unit 201A
Mississauga, ON
L5K2C9