NEW YORK, July 17 — Researchers in the US have developed a system for recycling astronauts’ urine, transforming it into water that they can then drink during long exterior missions.

This solution is directly inspired by the "stillsuits” seen in the sci-fi world of Dune, a type of suit that recovers and recycles water.

Sofia Etlin, the researcher at the head of this project, admits to being a fan of Frank Herbert’s novel Dune and was broadly inspired by the "stillsuits” that enable the Fremen to collect and process moisture from their breath, perspiration and urine, in order to recycle the water.

Together with her team at Cornell University, she has developed a suit that could be useful for future long-duration space missions.

Currently, astronauts use a maximum absorption garment, a kind of ultrasophisticated layer containing a super-absorbent polymer to collect urine and feces during spacewalks or exterior missions.

This can be uncomfortable to wear, and can even cause UTIs (urinary tract infections). This technology therefore needs to be improved for future long missions, to the Moon or Mars, for example, where astronauts will be called upon to carry out long missions away from their base.

The new system takes the form of an undergarment with a collection cup directly connected to a filtration system that purifies the urine and redirects the newly filtered water to an internal storage bag.

Urine is around 95 per cent water. It is therefore entirely possible to filter it to purify it and make it drinkable.

The first prototype developed weighs almost 8kg, requires a battery to operate, and can purify half a liter of water in just five minutes.

This discovery is outlined in a paper published in Frontiers in Space Technology. Note that this kind of system could also be practical on Earth, for firefighters or hikers, for example.

As far as space stations are concerned, the task is much simpler.

Nasa has already found a way to recycle almost all the water used by astronauts aboard the International Space Station.

Among other things, this involves recovering the crew’s sweat and urine, then transforming it into drinking water by means of a water recovery system and a treatment solution to make it safely drinkable.

Particularly sophisticated dehumidifiers capture moisture released into the cabin air by the crew’s breathing and sweat. Another sub-system recovers water from urine. A distillation process then gives rise to recoverable drinking water.

Every day, each astronaut needs around four litres of water, whether for drinking, cooking or washing. This research is therefore fundamental to the development of effective life support systems for (very) long-duration space missions in the future. — ETX Studio