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Difficult Pumping Applications from Blackhawk Environmental Company

Blackhawk Explosion-proof Electric Anchor Pump® and Electric Control Panel Improve Landfill Gas Capture and Help Optimize Bioreactor Environmental Recovery Operations

Landfill gas collection and control, leachate recirculation and liquid application are critical to bioreactor landfills designed to maximize environmental recovery. In 2000, the Salem County Utilities Authority Landfill Facility (SCUA) in Alloway, N.J., began recirculating leachate within its landfill mass. Pleased with the initial results, SCUA decided to optimize the process in less than a year and contracted their consulting firm to prepare a plan that builds upon and enhances the facility’s existing practices. Another SCUA consultant pointed out that due to the volatile nature of the situation, the methane collection system required an explosion-proof pump. The agreed upon choice was the Blackhawk Explosion-proof Electric Anchor Pump® with Electric Control Panel designed for pumping hazardous fluids and for pumping in potentially hazardous and explosive environments. In June, 2003, SCUA installed the Blackhawk Electric 102E Pump at the facility, an approximately 40-acre landfill in operation since 1988.

“The Blackhawk Electric Anchor Pump 102E is working well for us and doing exactly what it is supposed to do. The pump captures methane gas condensate from the leachate sump collection system prior to the gas going to flare. No liquid can go to the flare as it will extinguish the flame,” said Michael Chapman, SCUA executive director.

Their factory support was excellent and their follow-through superb. We at SCUA were familiar with Blackhawk through word-of-mouth recommendations and the trade press, yet Blackhawk managed to exceed our already high expectations. The Electric Anchor Pump is a great pump, easy to inspect, maintain and troubleshoot,” said Chapman.

Blackhawk’s explosion-proof Electric Anchor Pump and motor with an explosion-proof electric control box meets NEMA 4 classification. This piston pump features a top head drive design, so the pump’s explosion-proof motor and electrical power cords are located outside the sump or well, and the pump is easy to inspect, maintain and troubleshoot.

The stainless steel and Viton Electric Anchor Pump can be used for shallow and deep well recovery. The pump inlet
is at the bottom of the pump, and the pump acts like a syringe, creating powerful suction to pull the liquid into the
pump with every stroke and to draw it to the bottom of the well for consistent and reliable results. The pump drive
mechanism on top of the wellhead lets the operator see at a glance that the pump is working as it should and
keeps it easy to maintain.

At its approximately 40-acre facility, SCUA accepts non-hazardous solid waste within an approximately 25-acre liner
footprint. Approximately 15 additional acres are approved in the solid waste facility permit. The pumping station
with the Blackhawk Anchor Pump is located in a 5-acre portion of this additional liner area using bioreactor technology.
Explosion-proof Electric Anchor Pump and motor meet NEMA 4 classification.

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