Scientists say they have developed a new way to collect astronauts’ urine in minutes and process it into drinking water.
For many years, astronauts used disposable diapers inside a spacesuit called a Maximum Absorbency Garment (MAG) when they ventured into open space on the ISS. These garments, first developed in the early 1970s, collect and store urine, allowing astronauts to pee anywhere. However, given that spacewalks can sometimes last up to eight hours, MAG can expose astronauts to physical discomfort and the risk of skin irritation and infection.
MAG also does not recycle the water in urine, so during the walk astronauts must rely on a constant supply of 0.95 liters of water that they carry in a drinker inside their spacesuit.
But now scientists think they have a solution to the problem: a new, lightweight system that can collect and clean about 0.5 liters of water from urine in a human spacesuit and in just five minutes.
If this system were implemented, astronauts would wear underwear made of flexible compression material and lined with antimicrobial fabric. The system also includes a moisture sensor that captures urine; the sensor is located in a silicone cup under the wearer’s genitals.
When urine is detected, a vacuum pump is activated, which draws the urine into a filtration device worn on the astronaut’s back. The filter is approximately 38 cm high and 23 cm wide. An 8-kilogram filtration device would convert urine into fresh water, which could then be fed into the spacesuit’s drinker.
The new system is still in the early stages of testing. However, if developed, it could help solve a dilemma for astronauts involved in space exploration, according to the team behind the system. The question of how to deal with urine during a spacewalk is especially relevant given that NASA plans to establish a permanent station on the Moon by the end of the decade.
The team described their new device in a paper published Friday (July 12) in the journal Frontiers in Space Technology. So far, the device has been proven in the lab to effectively remove major components of urine and reduce salt levels in urine to meet health standards, the team says.
“Getting urine out of the body as quickly as possible should reduce some of the health complications astronauts currently experience, such as rashes, urinary tract infections, and digestive problems,” study lead author Sofia Etlin, a researcher at Weill Cornell Medicine, told Live Science via email. .
“Secondly, the larger total amount of water generated by our system will keep the astronauts hydrated,” Etlin added.
Spacesuits are limited in size and battery capacity, so the volume and power requirements of the new system should be carefully considered. Still, the authors wrote, it’s worth looking for a trade-off if we improve the health and performance of astronauts and provide them with enough water for contingencies.
The team has tested the filtration system, “but further human studies will be needed to ensure maximum suitability and comfort.”
The team also needs to test whether the device works in real-world conditions in space, such as microgravity. If the tests on Earth are successful, then the spacesuit will be tested during real spacewalks from the ISS.
“Our system would probably only be implemented in new spacesuits according to their specifications, and that would require some further adaptation of the technology,” Etlin said. “So next year we definitely won’t see astronauts without diapers, but you never know what the future holds.”
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2024-07-22 15:32:58
