US Water Services and Novozymes settle patent infringement case

In Minnesota, U.S. Water Services, Inc. and Novozymes have settled a U.S. patent infringement action U.S. Water brought against Novozymes alleging infringement of U.S. Patent Nos. 8,415,137 and 8,609,399, and the validity of the patents was upheld by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The terms of the settlement are confidential.

The United States Patent Office issued U.S. Patent Nos. 8,415,137 and 8,609,399 relating to U.S. Water’s pHytOUT® deposit control technology in 2013. U.S. Water’s pHytOUT® technology is designed to control mineral deposit scaling, reduce back-end fouling and greatly reduce sulfuric acid use, among other benefits. pHytOUT® solves a common problem for ethanol producers – the formation of scale forming deposits in processing equipment. These deposits impede heat transfer and flow and compromise the proper operation of mechanical devices used in ethanol processing.