NB Wheel™ – Next Generation Oxygenation, Fish Welfare and Cage Management

A fish welfare and environmental resilience platform that minimizes oxygen-related stress and helps maintain optimal conditions for fish health, growth, and survival.

A New Approach to Open-Net Salmon Farming

NB Wheel™ is an integrated environmental management platform designed specifically for modern salmon farming. By combining advanced nanobubble technology, oxygenation, water circulation, and net conditioning into a single system, NB Wheel delivers benefits that extend far beyond conventional oxygen supplementation.

Unlike centralized oxygenation systems that rely on barges, long pipe networks, and remote oxygen delivery, NB Wheel generates and distributes nanobubbles directly inside the cage, at the depths where fish need them most.

The Challenge

Salmon farmers face increasing challenges related to:

• Oxygen limitations at high biomass

• Rising sea temperatures

• Harmful algal bloom events

• Net fouling and biofilm accumulation

• Increasing operational costs

• Fish welfare requirements

• Dead fish problem

• Sustainability and energy efficiency targets

Traditional oxygenation systems are often designed to deliver oxygen, but not necessarily to optimize the entire cage environment.

NB Wheel was developed to address both.

How NB Wheel Works

The system utilizes multiple nanobubble generators mounted on a proprietary wheel configuration and powered by a variable-frequency seawater pump.

Typically, three NB Wheels are installed within each cage at:

• 10 meters depth

• 20 meters depth

• 30 meters depth

Each unit simultaneously:

• Generates oxygen-rich nanobubbles

• Circulates large volumes of seawater

• Improves oxygen distribution

• Enhances water movement throughout the cage

• Supports cleaner net conditions

The result is a more stable and productive farming environment.

Key Advantages

Superior Oxygen Utilization

Nanobubbles are generated directly within the cage, minimizing transport losses associated with long pipe systems.

Benefits include:

• High oxygen transfer efficiency

• Reduced gas losses

• Improved dissolved oxygen distribution

• More effective oxygen utilization

Potential Benefits Regarding Sea Lice and Jellyfish

Sea lice larvae are microscopic planktonic organisms that drift with ocean currents and are most commonly found in the upper water layers. By maintaining consistently high oxygen levels at depths of 10–30 meters, fish can utilize deeper parts of the cage for longer periods, reducing their exposure to surface waters where sea lice concentrations are typically highest. The water movement generated by the oxygen wheels may also help reduce the residence time of drifting sealice.

Jellyfish, including harmful species such as the string jellyfish (Apolemia uvaria), are also largely transported by water currents. The water movement generated by the oxygen wheels may help reduce the residence time of drifting jellyfish and jellyfish fragments within the fish's primary living zone. In addition, the availability of well-oxygenated deeper water provides fish with a refuge below many jellyfish and algal concentrations.

While further documentation and field studies are needed to quantify these effects, the combination of deep-water oxygenation and continuous water circulation has the potential to improve fish welfare by reducing exposure to sea lice, jellyfish, harmful algal blooms, and other environmental stressors.

Improved Fish Welfare

Stable oxygen conditions contribute directly to fish health and performance.

Potential benefits include:

• Reduced hypoxia stress

• Improved swimming performance

• Better appetite and feed intake

• More uniform fish distribution

• Enhanced resilience during environmental stress events

• Increased survival

Water Quality Enhancement

NB Wheel actively circulates water throughout the cage volume.

This may:

• Reduce stagnant zones

• Improve water exchange

• Enhance environmental uniformity

• Improve overall cage conditions

Reduced Net Fouling                                                                                                                                                                   

Continuous water movement and nanobubble activity may help reduce:

• Biofilm formation

• Organic accumulation

• Fouling pressure

Potentially reducing net cleaning frequency and associated operational costs.                                                                              

Environmental Resilience

Designed to support fish welfare during challenging environmental conditions, including:                                                                     

• Low-current periods

• Elevated temperatures

• High biomass events

• Harmful algal bloom episodes

• Delousing oprations

Energy Efficient by Design

NB Wheel combines multiple operational functions into a single platform:

✓ Oxygenation

✓ Nanobubble generation

✓ Water circulation

✓ Environmental conditioning

✓ Fish welfare support

This integrated approach reduces infrastructure requirements

while maximizing operational efficiency.

Scalable Technology

NB Wheel can be configured to suit different site requirements using multiple system sizes:

Above includes 3 NB wheels with 5 nanobubble generators in each, total 15 nanobubble generators.

VSA oxygen generators like PCI DOCS serie with very low power usage is ideal for multiple pens (5-6 kW pr pen 540 kg O₂/day).

Beyond Oxygenation

NB Wheel is not simply an oxygen delivery system, it is an integrated platform designed to improve.

• Fish welfare

• Water quality

• Operational efficiency

• Environmental resilience

• Sustainability

By bringing advanced nanobubble technology directly into the cage environment, NB Wheel represents a new generation of environmental management solutions for open-net aquaculture.

Smarter Water. Healthier Fish. Better Farming.

NB Wheel™
Integrated Nanobubble Technology for Open-Net Aquaculture  

Improved nanobubble technology

1. Oxygen Transfer

Gaia Water injects 95% pure oxygen as ultrafine nanobubbles, achieving more than 90% gas transfer efficiency. This results in:

• rapid increases in dissolved oxygen (DO)

• stable DO levels over time (nanobubbles remain in the water for weeks)

• improved oxygen distribution in deeper layers (documented in the Macquarie Harbour study)

2. Water Treatment

Gaia Water is used for:

• lake and pond rehabilitation

• algae control

• reduction of odor and organic load

• ozone nanobubbles for disinfection (300–400 million UFB/mL with O₃)

• bioremediation in wastewater and process water

Ozone nanobubbles are particularly effective at eliminating bacteria and algae, but require proper safety procedures.

3. Dual‑Use Built Into the Technology

Gaia Water specifies several gases that can be injected:

• Oxygen (DO enhancement)

• Ozone (disinfection)

• CO₂ (pH control, plant growth)

• Nitrogen (degassing, inerting)

• Hydrogen (specialized processes)

In short, the same nanobubble units can be used for both gas transfer and chemical/biological water treatment.

                                                                                          Extremely high flow dense nanobubble quantity