VA/EA Reduction

VA/EA Reduction
Available as:
- Mobile Service
- Service at our Facility
- Equipment Purchase
- Equipment Rental
Contact Us

technology

Patented Technology

The core of our company’s VA Reduction technology is Nanofiltration (NF). NF is a pressure driven membrane process that allows VA, in the form of acetic acid as well as Ethyl Acetate (EA), to pass through while holding back desirable acids. Unlike Reverse Osmosis (RO) that flat out rejects everything, NF is selective in its removal characteristics. This allows the process to operate at pressures 75% lower than RO. This lower operating pressure and selective removal of ions translates into a more efficient and gentle process overall.

The combination of NF with acid adsorption constitutes our VA/EA removal process and is protected by US patent number 7651616.

Why Reduce VA?

There are a number of reasons for reducing VA. These include helping restart stuck ferments to improving taste and aroma by dialing in the final VA numbers. Reducing VA should not be viewed as a remediation tool only. It can help immensely with quality and many wines that have had VA reduced go on to win awards.

service

Mobile Service

We will adjust your volatile acidity levels at your facility using one of our state of the art mobile processing rigs. Our company has manufactured all its systems in-house since 1999. This has allowed us to fine tune our process over the past 18 years from real time field experience. We have always believed that quality comes first and it is our passion to ensure that all wine processed (from 60 gallons to 600 000 gallons) is treated to the highest possible standard across our full range of process equipment. The advantages of VA Filtrations world leading service are as follows:

Quality you can trust
Patented NF technology (all our competitors have to use RO or they are infringing)
25%-30% reduction in VA/EA on a single pass through our mobile systems
No heat increase in the wine during processing
600-800 gph process speed
Technician supervised from start to finish
Lower operating pressure when compared to RO
Guaranteed removal of VA/EA
Designed, manufactured, tested and operated in the USA

ON-SITE REQUIREMENTS FOR SERVICING

The following are required on site for service purposes:

Wine in tank at 55°F or higher
Clean tank for tank to tank configuration if preferred
Nitrogen for purging purposes (60lb or similar cylinder)
3 Phase 240V (20 amp) or 480V (20 amp) power
Water for CIP and regeneration of resin
Floor drains or similar
Winery hoses (1.5” TC preferred) if tanks are more than 30 feet from machine location

VA Filtration Process Leaflet

equipment sales

Equipment for Purchase

Coupled with our range of mobile VA/EA processing equipment, we also manufacture a full range of VA/EA reduction machinery for purchase. With in-house engineering and fabrication, you are not limited to model X or model Y. You can choose our standard systems or we can design and custom manufacture a system to meet your needs. With manufacturing in American Canyon California, we are able to speedily support purchased machinery when break downs happen. All components used in our equipment are sourced and available in the US. Compare that to European machinery!

Advantages of purchasing VA/EA reduction machinery from us:

Patented Nanofiltration process
20 years of design and operational experience
Manufactured in the USA
Quality maintenance and breakdown support for all machinery
Spare parts readily available off the shelf in most cases

MODELS AVAILABLE – For VA/EA Reduction

Systems are purchased as membrane systems and optioned with resin columns depending on winery needs.

Model Number	Membrane System Configuration	Permeate Flow
SS4-1-10	1 x 4″ Horizontal System	10 gph
SS4-4-20	4 x 4″ Vertical Membrane System	20 gph
VAF8-2-100VSA	2 x 8″ Vertical Membrane System	40 gph
VAF8-4-200VSA	4 x 8″ Vertical Membrane system	80 gph
VAF8-6-300HSA	6 x 8″ Vertical Membrane Systems	120 gph
VAF-12-600HSARC	12 x 8″ Horizontal Membrane System	300 gph

Optional – Resin Columns and resin column racks (DS – Duty/Standby)
VA60-M	Manual 60 Liter VA resin column
pHC60-M	Manual 60 Liter pHC resin column
Regen pump box	For VA Resin regen
Venturi	For pHC or VA column regen
VA100-M	Manual 100 liter VA Resin Column
pHC100-M	Manual 100 liter pHC Resin Column
VAPHC-60-DS	Skid mounted DS VA & DS pHC – 60 Liter resin capacity (4 Column system)
VAPHC-100-DS	Skid mounted DS VA & DS pHC – 100 liter resin capacity (4 Column system)

Standard equipment on 4” Membrane systems – Suffix M

316 S/S Piping and fittings
Alfa Laval valves
Half-length bag pre-filter – 150 microns
Hydracel high pressure pump – 7.5 HP
BP Membrane elements – VP optional
2 x Pressure sensors digital display
Pressure shut off on high permeate and high concentrate pressures
Magnetic flow meter
Electrical panel including push button and batch permeate control

Standard Equipment on 8” Membrane systems – Suffix SA

316 S/S Piping and fittings
Alfa Laval valves
Full-length bag pre-filter – 150 microns
CIP tank
Grundfos feed/CIP pump
Hydracel or multistage centrifugal high pressure pump – 7.5 HP (2 & 4 Vessel) and 15 HP (VAF9-6-300HSA)
4 x Pressure sensors digital display
Pressure shut off on high permeate and high concentrate pressures
Magnetic flow meter
Electrical panel including HMI and PLC control with remote access
Optional multistage centrifugal pumps available for lower pressure operation and higher throughout

Standard Equipment on 8” Mobile Style Membrane systems – Suffix SARC

316 S/S Piping and fittings
Alfa Laval valves
Full-length bag pre-filter – 150 microns
CIP tank
Grundfos feed/CIP pump
Hydracel or multistage centrifugal high pressure pump – 15 HP
6 x Pressure sensors digital display – IFM
Pressure shut off on 6 measured values
2 x Magnetic flow meter (feed and permeate) – IFM
Automated electrical back pressure control valve
4 x 100 Liter resin columns mounted inside the frame
Regen manifold
Electrical panel including 7” HMI and remote accessibility with logging and batch e-mail feature

TECHNICAL SPECS

Max Operating pressure:	600 psi
Required utilities:	Electrical Power; Cold Water; Hot water; Drain; Nitrogen
Water used for CIP:	25-40 gallons per element
Membrane life expected:	Depends on quality of feed but typically 1500 to 2000 hrs

equipment rental

Equipment for Rental

Most often our mobile service can accommodate winery needs. However, when lot sizes are too small to justify a minimum charge, we are able to rent VA/EA systems. These systems are self-operated.

Standard systems available for rental are as follows:

SS4-1-10
SS4-4-20

Rental systems are collected from our offices in American Canyon. Full instructions for their use is available at time of collection.