10 Finalists Selected for $100,000 Prize in Imagine H2O's Water-Energy Nexus Competition

We all know that it takes an awful lot of energy to power our water use. In an effort to slingshot conventional water infrastructure past its reliance on cheep and abundant energy supplies toward a low-cost, energy and carbon efficient future, Imagine H2O has put on a global competition--with a $100,000 cash prize--for the development of the best energy-saving water system start-up business plans.

On December 16, Imagine H20 announced the top 10 finalists--all wielding potentially great, innovative and promising technologies and services ranging from generating energy at waste treatment facilities, to hydrokinetic floating turbines--in their water-energy nexus competition. The top ten finalists in the running for the $100,000 grand prize and chances to bring their ideas to the market, are:

• Agua Via – Develops a 1-atomic layer thick nanotech membrane that enables
  desalination at a 66% energy reduction and 50% cost reduction, providing energy
  efficient purification and wastewater remediation.
• BlackGold Biofuels - Recovers energy from wastewater streams, creating
  lucrative renewable energy assets from pollution liabilities.
• FOG Busters - Treats petroleum, biofuel and food processing wastewater “better,
  faster, cheaper, cleaner and greener” while capturing the FOG (fat, oil and
  grease) to make into biodiesel.
• Hydrovolts - Makes portable floating turbines that make renewable energy and
  clean water from an untapped global resource of hydrokinetic energy in water
  canals.
• mOasis - Harnesses water on any land in the world so that plants grow and the
  planet can restore its ability to sustain life.
• NLine Energy, Inc. - Converts wasted energy found in water transmission and
  distribution systems into renewable energy.
• Pilus Energy - Harnesses genetically enhanced bacteria in scalable electrogenic
  bioreactor and harvests the electricity and biogases from their metabolism of
  organics like those found in wastewater.
• Puralytics - Solves critical water contamination problems with environmentally
  superior products.
• Solar Machines - Innovative, non-PV based technology directly and efficiently
  converts solar energy into mechanical work for water pumping applications.
• Water Management Co - Helps water utilities realize the full benefits of their
  investments in advanced meter reading, system control and asset management.

Read Imagine H2O's entire press release on the finalist announcement.