Researchers at the University of Florida have developed a process to convert human feces into rocket fuel, per NASA’s request.
Pratap Pullammanappallil, associate professor of agricultural and biological engineering at the University of Florida who was part of the research team, said researchers worked on calculating how much methane could be produced from food packaging, uneaten food and human waste.
The team estimated a daily conversion of up to 290 liters of methane – which would be used to power rockets – per crew each day.
“The idea was to see whether we could make enough fuel to launch rockets and not carry all the fuel and its weight from Earth for the return journey,” Pullammanappallil said. “Methane can be used to fuel the rockets. Enough methane can be produced to come back from the moon.”
The conversion process produces a biogas – a combination of methane and carbon dioxide – and eliminates hazardous pathogens in the waste.
Currently, when astronauts poo and urinate while in space, the byproducts are collected and stored in containers, and then burned upon re-entry to Earth.
By 2024, NASA plans on having an inhabited base on the moon to serve as the location from where future deep space missions will be launched. However, waste cannot be disposed on the moon, and returning from future long-term missions with that load would be impractical, a release from the University of Florida states.
Although the new process was developed to launch rockets, it may be used on Earth in the future.
“It could be used on campus or around town, or anywhere, to convert waste into fuel,” Pullammanappallil said.
Further details on the process are available in the journal Advances in Space Research.
(With reports from United Press International)
