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Fuel Tech Inc. and Royal Caridea unveil results of gas infusion system trials

Shrimp farm technology company, Royal Caridea LLC, worked with engineering technology company, Fuel Tech Inc., on a trial to determine the effects of growing Pacific whiteleg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) in a raceway system using its patented gas infusion system.

“The research shows that high post-larval shrimp stocking, combined with reliable dissolved oxygen (DO) dosing with DGI, can dramatically increase total production compared with traditional aeration methods,” the company’s press release states. 

The comparative trial occurred in back-to-back growth cycles on a raceway with high species stocking and low-salinity water at Royal Caridea’s aquaculture farm in Arizona, USA. Trademarked DGI®Dissolved Gas Infusion, Fuel Tech said the technology enables higher stock densities.

“Demand for shrimp is increasing globally and shrimp farming is an important source to help meet the growing demand and reduce overfishing of the marine environment,” said Bill Decker, vice-president of water and wastewater treatment technologies at Fuel Tech. 

In the first growth cycle, traditional bubble aeration using the venturi principle was used until the oxygen demand of the water could no longer be met. This required that the shrimp be partially harvested to ensure acceptable DO concentrations were maintained for those remaining.   

 In the second growth cycle, Fuel Tech’s innovative DGI™ technology provided DO concentrations at 150 per cent of atmospheric saturation. This allowed for more shrimp to reach maturity within the raceway, along with likely health improvements for the shrimp.    

 Each shrimp achieved a mean weight of 42 grams in about 100 days. The growth curves for individual shrimps showed no significant change from the trial when selective early harvesting was necessary to manage the high biomass loading.

Fuel Tech reported that the DGI trial showed no evidence of trimethylamine odour, oxidation, speedy metabolism, osmotic shock, or gas bubble disease. 

This suggests that maintaining DO levels above saturation in low-salinity water, without bubbles, increases the yield while minimizing any detrimental effects of high oxygen levels.