Les astronautes des futures missions spatiales de la Nasa pourront boire leur urine recyclée. Cela diminuera de façon appréciable la quantité d’eau potable embarquée.
D’ores et déjà, les équipages de la Station Spatiale Internationale boivent une partie de leur urine. De même, leur sueur est recyclée. Mais les équipement requis à cette fin, qui servent aussi à récupérer les fèces, sont lourds et peu commodes. Au retour sur Terre, ils sont brûles ou jetés, ce que certains considèrent comme un gaspillage inadmissible.
Des chercheurs de la Cornell University à New York ont mis au point un appareil de 8 kg de la taille d’une boite à chaussures qui peut collecter l’urine grâce à des cathéters externes adaptables aux deux sexes et la filtrer pour la rendre buvable directement en la faisant passer par un filtre dit two-step osmosis filter.
Voir dans le cas des usages urbains https://digestedorganics.com/tsro-brochure/
Pour le moment il s’agit d’un dispositif testé en laboratoire mais des essais en vraie grandeur sont prévus dans les prochaines missions. La Nasa a prévu de demander à la société Axiom Space https://www.axiomspace.com/de lui faire des propositions en ce sens.
De tels système de recyclage de l’urine seront indispensables pour les prochaines missions sur la Lune et ultérieurement sur Mars.
Il va de soi qu’il sera bien plus complexes de recycler les matières solides
Référence
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/space-technologies/articles/10.3389/frspt.2024.1391200/full
The current waste management system within the Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) consists of a disposable diaper—the Maximum Absorbency Garment (MAG)—that collects urine and feces during extravehicular activities (EVAs) that last up to 8 h. Such exposure to waste for prolonged periods of time contributes to hygiene-related medical events, including urinary tract infections and gastrointestinal distress. Historically, prior to using the MAG, astronauts have limited their food intake or eaten a low-residue diet before embarking on physically demanding spacewalks, reducing their work performance index (WPI) and posing a health risk. Furthermore, the current 0.95 L In-suit Drink Bag (IDB) does not provide sufficient water for more frequent, longer-range spacewalks, which carry greater potential for contingency scenarios requiring extended time away from a vehicle. High transport costs per pound to space and resource scarcity exacerbate these challenges, underscoring the need for water-efficient waste management. This paper introduces a novel in-suit urine collection and filtration system developed in the Mason Lab at Weill Cornell Medical College that could address these hygiene and hydration concerns. The device would collect astronaut urine via an external catheter and filter it using forward and reverse osmosis (FO-RO) into potable water, creating a sustainable and hygienic circular water economy, enhancing astronaut wellbeing. This research aims to achieve an 85% urine collection rate using a modified MAG. The modified MAG will be made of a flexible compression material lined with antimicrobial fabric, and urine is collected through a silicone urine collection cup, which differs for male and female astronauts to conform to anatomy. Urine collection via a vacuum pump is triggered by a humidity sensor that detects the presence of urine in the cup. The FO-RO filtration system targets a minimum of 75% water recovery, while consuming less than 10% of EMU energy. To meet health standards, the filtrate maintains low salt levels (<250 ppm NaCl) and effectively removes major urine solutes (urea, uric acid, ammonia, calcium). However, further research and testing are warranted to refine and implement these innovations for future space missions, contributing to the advancement of deep space exploration technologies and astronaut health and performance.
Europe Solidaire 