Our History
Sears Ecological Applications Company......
The Sears Companies
of Rome N.Y. operated four oil distribution facilities in New York
State serving the majority of that state and large portions of the
western New England States for over 75 plus years. By the 1980's and 90's they found that
they had excess liquid storage capacity, as a result of the rise in
use of other fuels. A search for other liquid storage business
eventually led to the then new liquid ice melters based on various
agricultural by-products. Early on, in about 1997, Sears associated with another
supplier of ice melter and began distribution in New York and New
England.
As time progressed, Sears was able to
acquire the original Toth Patent (Hungary) that seems to have been
the precursor for several later waste/by-product based ice melters.
Although effective, Sears soon determined that there were inherent
problems with these products. The need for consistency from batch to
batch, the difficulty of finding high quality material and the
varying performance as a result of these problems were a continuing
source of concern.
Starting in late 1997, Sears
undertook a major research and development
program
in an attempt to solve the variability problems of the
waste/by-product based melters. This led to a program to produce an
ice melter that would use refined materials, that would provide
consistent and repeatable performance, and whose characteristics
could be reliably predicted in all weather conditions. It was
learned, in the course of this extensive effort, that Freeze Point
Depression in chloride salts is caused by Low Molecular Weight
Carbohydrates- put simply- Sugars. The conventional wisdom at that
time ran to protein as the basis of the improved performance.
With the first Patent issued in 2001,
there are now a series of additional patents covering a broad range
of ice melting products, all based in the Low Molecular Weight
Carbohydrate discovery. An additional benefit is that their
presence also provides a significant reduction in the corrosiveness
of the salt.
Not content to
concentrate only on research, Sears also made extensive
adaptations to its facilities to receive ships, store and blend
large volumes of material, develop filtration systems and acquire
special metering equipment to facilitate accurate truck loading.
Sears realized that in order to meet the requirements of large
users, it must have the demonstrated ability to provide large
quantities of consistent product on demand.
With all of the above, there is also
an emphasis on reducing and controlling
environmental
impact. Sears research staff has studied the effects of runoff on
water courses, impact on aquatic life, algal formation, BOD
(Biological Oxygen Demand) and further means of reducing corrosion,
as well as more specialized studies requested by various agencies.
We believe that
Sears' ongoing research and
development program, together with its concentration on the ability
to deliver large quantities of quality product is unequalled by any
other company in the industry.
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