Stormwater is surface water that originates from rain, including snow and ice melt. Heavy rains can create surface water in abnormal quantities and that water either soaks naturally into the soil, evaporates, or runs off. Most run-off is conveyed directly to nearby streams, rivers, or other water bodies without treatment.

The problem is threefold. 1) Urbanization: We have developed our cities faster than any point in human existence, adding huge amounts of impermeable surface area in the form of streets, sidewalks, and rooftops, for example. 2) Aging Infrastructure: In many U.S. cities, water infrastructure is over 100 years old. It is deteriorating and in need of upgrades. 3) Larger rain events: Average precipitation rates are increasing throughout the country. To boot, the infrastructure we rely on to manage our water needs was built and sized for populations of a previous era. As the intensity and volume of rain events increases, the need to keep raindrops where they fall is more vital now than ever before.

Permeable surfaces allow us the ability to manage our stormwater the way nature intended to before we built our cities. By mimicking the permeability of natural soils, AquiPor permeable technology allows engineers to find creative ways to keep the raindrops where they fall.

The American Rivers Organization puts it well when defining green infrastructure as “an approach to water management that protects, restores, or mimics the natural water cycle. Green infrastructure is effective, economical, and enhances community safety and quality of life”. The AquiPor team would like to add that innovation in green infrastructure provides an opportunity to bring cutting edge technologies to aid in the healing of our planet.

AquiPor’s solution combines first-of-its-kind permeable hardscape material with patented engineering technology to turn hard surfaces (ie. sidewalks, parking lots, and street sections) into stormwater infiltration corridors. Our permeable material technology sets itself apart from other types of permeable paving because it is a permeable, hard surface material that is resistant to clogging. Through a proprietary chemical process, our material is manufactured to feature nanoscale porosity. Water can permeate through our material, while sediment, pollutants, and particulate matter is filtered onto the surface for easy cleaning. Our relentless pursuit of keeping these pores as small as possible has allowed us the opportunity to capture stormwater in a way unique to AquiPor.

Breaking down the raindrops into smaller droplets is a scientific term called capillary action. We break these drops into a uniform line at the surface of our technology, which allows us to separate the harmful materials that are carried in stormwater at the surface, all while allowing the drops to continue through the material, back to where they belong in nature.

AquiPor’s permeable concrete technology is being developed as a net-zero carbon material that features superior strength and durability to traditional concrete. Our material’s compressive strengths will range from 8,000-10,000 PSI and be suitable for vehicular loads, while also featuring permeability rates that exceed 25 inches per hour.

Unlike old versions of permeable pavement, our technology utilizes sub-micron porosity and has been shown in internal studies to filter out greater than 80% of particulate matter and problematic pollutants found in stormwater. Breaking the stormwater down and separating debris at the surface prevents the clogging issues that are problematic in other forms of green infrastructure.

Our material’s ability to filter stormwater particulates at the surface makes for a lower maintenance product that can be cleaned with normal vacuum or street cleaning equipment.

AquiPor’s combination of net-zero permeable material technology, proprietary civil engineering solutions, and mixed-utility broadband and solar solutions, allows us to deliver scalable green infrastructure at the neighborhood level.

We have developed our business model as an Engineering, Procurement, & Construction Management (E.P.C.M.) company, working with strategic industry partners to address the outdated and centralized approach to infrastructure development in our communities.

As an engineering, procurement, and construction management company, AquiPor will oversee the design, engineering, and construction of certain stormwater management projects that use our proprietary material and engineering technologies. We will procure materials from our turnkey suppliers and ensure the quality of all material made with AquiPor’s technology inside. As an E.P.CM, we can ensure the quality of every green infrastructure project we take on.

AquiPor’s permeable material is considered “green” both by virtue of how it functions as a stormwater runoff filter and in the way that the material is produced. AquiPor’s permeable hardscape material is a net-zero carbon technology.

Initially, all AquiPor product will be manufactured in the United States of America. However, since this is a material technology, it can be applied to manufacturing facilities throughout the world.

AquiPor is not a product manufacturer, but we will set up franchise manufacturers and distributors of our permeable hardscape material in the future. Our material technology can be colored and sized to various specifications and we anticipate making our material available for residential and commercial paver applications in the future.

Since our technology exceeds 8,000 PSI (pounds per square inch), we meet the construction requirement for strength in winter conditions. The ability of water to expand when frozen will not affect this technology.