MBR-RO Water Reclamation Patent Landscape 2026
The MBR-RO water reclamation patent space is moderately concentrated, with BL Technology Inc. holding a clear lead and activity anchored in China and the United States. The field peaked around 2017 and has since eased, leaving selective white space in adjacent technology branches such as AI-assisted process control and nutrient-recovery.
BL Technology Inc. leads a moderately concentrated field
BL Technology Inc. sits atop the applicant ranking, followed by Carollo Engineers Inc. and a cluster of industrial players including General Electric Co. and Corn Products Development Inc. The top five filers account for 34% of the combined output of the hundred largest filers, signalling moderate rather than extreme concentration.
A meaningful tier gap separates the top two filers from the rest of the field: BL Technology Inc. and Carollo Engineers Inc. together hold a decisive share of patent records among the top-ranked applicants, while most remaining applicants hold only two to six records each.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BL Technology Inc. | 16 | |
| 2 | Carollo Engineers Inc. | 11 | |
| 3 | General Electric Company | 6 | |
| 4 | Corn Products Development Inc. | 6 | |
| 5 | Eureka Resources LLC | 5 | |
| 6 | Velocys Technologies Ltd. | 5 | |
| 7 | Solvay SA | 4 | |
| 8 | LAMPI KEITH A | 3 | |
| 9 | CATH TZAHI Y | 3 | |
| 10 | HERRON JOHN R | 3 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | HOLLOWAY RYAN W | 3 | |
| 12 | 6E Resources Pte Ltd | 2 | |
| 13 | Ningbo Institute of Ecological and Environmental Sciences | 2 | |
| 14 | MURKUTE PRAVIN S | 2 | |
| 15 | Toray Industries Inc. | 2 | |
| 16 | Anhui Sennuo Membrane Technology Co. Ltd. | 2 | |
| 17 | SUZHOU SUWATER ENVIRONMENTAL SCI & TECH CO LTD | 2 | |
| 18 | Shanghai University of Electric Power | 2 | |
| 19 | Jiaxing Jiachu Technology Co. Ltd. | 2 | |
| 20 | Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA) | 2 |
The leaders’ positions suggest that MBR-RO system integration and biological treatment process design (C02F and B01D) are well-staked territory. New entrants face a defended core but will find the application layer — AI-driven monitoring, resource recovery — comparatively open.
Activity in the most recent 18–24 months is likely under-counted due to standard patent publication lag; apparent low volume in 2024–2025 should not be read as evidence of further decline. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
A 2017 peak followed by irregular, lower-volume activity; C02F dominates the technology mix
The annual filing trend and technology composition charts together reveal a field that has passed its initial growth phase and is now advancing in narrower, application-specific directions. Water and wastewater treatment (C02F) overwhelmingly dominates, while separation-process engineering (B01D) forms a secondary layer.
Annual filing trend
Filings peaked in 2017 at 14 records, then fell sharply before recovering partially in 2021 and 2023. The multi-year window shows a net decline of 26% in recent versus prior periods. Years 2024–2025 appear low partly due to publication lag and should be treated as provisional.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
C02F (water and wastewater treatment) accounts for the large majority of classified records, reflecting the core biological and chemical treatment processes. B01D (separation/filtration) is the next most active class, directly representing the membrane modules at the heart of MBR-RO systems. All other classes — including C01B, C05F, G06K, G06N, and H04L — hold very small shares, flagging genuine under-development in those branches.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
Water reuse system and method
Disclosed herein are processes, methods, and devices for use in water reclamation, including a system comprising an osmotic membrane bioreactor (OMBR), a microporous membrane bioreactor (MBR), a biological nitrogen removal system (BNR), and a source of high osmotic pressure solution (draw solution), and a reconcentration process to achieve high water… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Combination polymer treatment for flux enhancement… | 90 |
| 2 | 基于膜集成技术处理造纸废水及回用的工艺方法 | 50 |
| 3 | 焦化废水处理回用方法及其装置 | 46 |
| 4 | Water reuse system and method | 34 |
| 5 | Water reuse system and method | 30 |
| 6 | Method of using high molecular weight water solubl… | 30 |
| 7 | Method for cleaning filtration membrane modules an… | 27 |
| 8 | Water reuse system and method | 26 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the competitive structure means for R&D investment
The combination of a post-peak lifecycle, moderate top-tier concentration, limited cross-sector collaboration, and broad geographic filing suggests a field entering selective maturity — defensible at the core, but with real room in adjacent technology layers.
Post-peak field with easing annual volume
The lifecycle evidence indicates the field peaked around 2017 and annual filing volume has eased since then. On a multi-year basis the corpus still represents meaningful accumulated prior art, but the rate of new entry has slowed. R&D teams should anticipate filing a new family into a well-mapped core, making differentiation of approach or application domain more important than speed-to-file.
Lifecycle: DeclineTop two filers dominate; long tail of small holders
BL Technology Inc. holds 16 patent records and Carollo Engineers Inc. holds 11, creating a pronounced tier gap above the rest of the field where most applicants hold two to six records. The top five filers represent 34% of the hundred largest filers’ combined total. This structure means licensing conversations or partnerships will typically start with a small number of gatekeepers for core MBR-RO integration IP.
High top-tier gapLimited co-filing; BL Technology and GE are the only observed co-applicants
The only recorded co-applicant relationship in the evidence is between BL Technology Inc. and General Electric Co., who share two jointly filed records. The broader field shows no other documented collaboration clusters, making this a predominantly proprietary-filing landscape. Academic and public-sector entrants — such as Shanghai University of Electric Power and the Catalan Institute for Water Research — file independently, suggesting an ecosystem with limited pre-competitive consortium activity.
Low collaboration densityChina leads filings; strong US and PCT presence signals global ambition
China is the leading filing jurisdiction, followed by the United States, WIPO (PCT), and Europe (EPO). The presence of PCT and EPO filings alongside national routes in Canada, Israel, India, Australia, and Brazil indicates that the leading applicants are pursuing multi-market protection rather than purely domestic coverage. Teams planning to commercialise in any major water-stressed market should expect to encounter granted rights across multiple jurisdictions.
Multi-jurisdiction exposureGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| BL Technology Inc. | General Electric Company | 2 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
BL Technology Inc. and Carollo Engineers Inc. lead by volume; contrasting trajectories
The top two filers differ meaningfully in their technology emphasis and recent momentum. BL Technology Inc. holds a broad multi-class portfolio spanning biological treatment and membrane separation, while Carollo Engineers Inc. is narrowly focused on biological water treatment.
BL Technology Inc.
BL Technology Inc. leads with 16 patent records, the highest in the field. Its portfolio spans C02F 3 (biological water treatment), B01D 61 (membrane separation), and C02F 1 (physicochemical treatment), making it the most technically diversified filer in this corpus. The company has an established co-filing relationship with General Electric Co., reinforcing its position as the central integration IP holder in the field. No momentum trend data is available for this applicant in the evidence.
patent records: 16Carollo Engineers Inc.
Carollo Engineers Inc. holds 11 patent records, all concentrated in C02F 3 (biological water treatment), indicating a specialist rather than platform strategy. Recent filing momentum shows a decline of 90% versus the prior period, suggesting the firm has significantly reduced its patenting activity in this space. This narrowed focus and falling trajectory may indicate a shift toward implementation over further IP development.
patent records: 11| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Carollo Engineers Inc. | 1 | ▼ -90% |
| Velocys Technologies Ltd. | 1 | ▲ new entrant |
Under-served branches: AI-assisted control and nutrient recovery
Several IPC branches adjacent to the dominant C02F and B01D core hold very few records in the corpus, representing areas where patenting activity is sparse relative to plausible technical applicability. These are observations of relative sparsity; entry viability depends on each team’s specific capabilities.
G06N · AI and machine-learning models for process optimisation
G06N holds only 2 patent records in this corpus, a 1% share of all classified records. AI-driven predictive control of MBR fouling, permeate flux, and RO operating pressure is an active area of engineering research, but the patent record here is nearly empty. A team with expertise in process modelling or digital-twin design could potentially file with limited prior-art collision risk. Entry requires combining water-treatment domain knowledge with ML/optimisation IP.
Search this in Eureka →C05F · Organic and waste-derived fertilisers from reclaimed water streams
C05F holds only 2 patent records, a 1% share, despite the growing interest in resource-recovery from wastewater — particularly nutrient (nitrogen/phosphorus) extraction from MBR effluent prior to or alongside the RO step. The sparse record here suggests that applicants have not systematically combined MBR-RO system claims with downstream nutrient-recovery or fertiliser-production claims. Teams working on circular-economy water systems may find this adjacency relatively open.
Search this in Eureka →How leading applicants differ across technology routes
Route coverage across the main technology branches in the current evidence set.
| Player | C02F 3 · Water & wastewater treatment | C02F 1 · Water & wastewater treatment | C02F 9 · Water & wastewater treatment | C02F 103 · Water & wastewater treatment | B01D 61 · Separation processes (filtration etc.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BL Technology Inc. | Strong · 12 | Moderate · 6 | Absent | Moderate · 4 | Strong · 8 |
| General Electric Company | Strong · 10 | Moderate · 4 | Moderate · 3 | Emerging · 2 | Moderate · 5 |
| Solvay SA | Strong · 4 | Strong · 4 | Strong · 4 | Strong · 4 | Absent |
| Carollo Engineers Inc. | Strong · 11 | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Corn Products Development Inc. | Strong · 3 | Strong · 3 | Strong · 3 | Strong · 2 | Absent |
| Velocys Technologies Ltd. | Strong · 5 | Strong · 3 | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus in scope covers 62 patent families. The leading filing jurisdiction is China, followed by the United States, WIPO (PCT), and Europe (EPO).
BL Technology Inc. leads with 16 patent records, ahead of Carollo Engineers Inc. with 11. The top five filers together account for 34% of the combined total among the hundred largest filers.
The evidence indicates the field peaked around 2017 and annual filing volume has eased since then, with a 26% decline in recent versus prior periods. Note that filings from the most recent 18–24 months are likely under-counted due to publication lag.
C02F (water and wastewater treatment) is by far the most active class, followed by B01D (separation processes and filtration). All other classes — including AI, data, and nutrient-recovery branches — hold very small numbers of records.
The only recorded co-applicant relationship in the evidence is between BL Technology Inc. and General Electric Co., who jointly filed 2 records. No other collaboration clusters are documented in this corpus.
The most-cited work relates to polymer treatment for membrane flux enhancement (90 citations), membrane-integrated treatment of papermaking wastewater (50 citations), coking wastewater treatment and reuse methods (46 citations), and multiple filings covering water reuse systems and methods (26–34 citations each).
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from PatSnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
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