Patent — available for licensing
Pre-Treatment Solution for Water Recovery
A NASA invention available to explore as a licensing opportunity.
About this technology
Overview
Innovators at NASA Johnson Space Center have developed a pre-treatment solution, currently being used aboard the International Space Station (ISS), that increases the amount of potable water recovered through the ISS's urine processor assembly (UPA). The solution acts to stabilize flushed urine chemically for immediate storage and later distillation in the UPA and increases water recovery without precipitation of minerals that clog urine-processing hardware. Implemented by NASA aboard the ISS since 2016, the solution has increased the water recovery rate in the ISS’s UPA from the prior 75% level to a steady 87%, which doubled the volume of feed processed per cycle, reduced the volume of waste brine by half, and eliminated the formation of precipitates. The benefits extend to other steps in the urine treatment process. Less precipitate reduces the frequency of filter changes in the UPA and thus the number of filters used per gallon during the distillation stage. Furthermore, this pretreatment solution can prevent bacterial and fungal growth during storage of urine. This technology is at a technology readiness level (TRL) 9 (flight proven through successful mission operations), and the innovation is now available for your company to license. Please note that NASA does not manufacture products itself for commercial sale.