Fertilizer from Urine - Revision history

Raymond RedCorn: /* Principles of Operation */

2018-11-08T14:52:16Z

Principles of Operation

Raymond RedCorn: /* Principles of Operation */

2018-11-08T10:37:12Z

Principles of Operation

Raymond RedCorn: /* System Variations */

2018-11-08T10:30:50Z

System Variations

Raymond RedCorn: /* Ratios of Inputs to Outputs */

2018-11-08T10:12:21Z

Ratios of Inputs to Outputs

Raymond RedCorn: /* Ratios of Inputs to Outputs */

2018-11-08T10:11:54Z

Ratios of Inputs to Outputs

Raymond RedCorn: /* Operating Requirements and Conditions */

2018-11-08T10:08:18Z

Operating Requirements and Conditions

Raymond RedCorn: /* Principles of Operation */

2018-11-08T10:07:51Z

Principles of Operation

Raymond RedCorn: /* Importance */

2018-11-08T10:06:39Z

Importance

Raymond RedCorn: /* Importance */

2018-11-08T10:05:18Z

Importance

Raymond RedCorn: /* Importance */

2018-11-08T10:04:42Z

Importance

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 =Principles of Operation=
 <!-- Only briefly state anything that the StemNode Diagrams can cover within subsystems.  This section is often omitted for specific systems (manuals on a specific make, model, or serial number) -->
-Urine is often free of pathogens, however pathogens can be present in the urine of unhealthy people, or pathogens can be introduced via contamination from feces during collection.  Typically urine is separated at the source by urine separating toilets (aka partitioned toilets) or Urinals.  Urine is collected, preferably in undiluted form to reduce the storage volume needed. If urine is allowed to sit, urea will hydrolyze, eventually raising the pH to ~9 (Maurer, et al., 2006). The high pH will inactivate pathogens over time, especially under warmer conditions. Storing for six months above 20°C reduces the risk of contracting an illness to 5.4x10<sup>-4</sup> per instance of direct ingestion (Schönning, 2001).
+Urine is often free of pathogens, however pathogens can be present in the urine of unhealthy people, or pathogens can be introduced via contamination from feces during collection.  Applying urine directly to crops introduces the risk of humans consuming pathogens, therefore a simple treatment of storing urine is recommended prior to exposing crops to urine.
-Urine contains nutrients in similar ratios to what plants need with a few exceptions. Urine is low in metals as these are typically routed to the feces during digestion, however many metals are needed in low enough quantities  plants can accumulate them from the surrounding soil or in the water source. Urine is also high in salt (NaCl) because we as humans have a greater need and consumption of salt beyond what plants provide. Therefore urine fertilization has been studied specifically on halophytes and natrophillic crops (https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/jf0717891).
+Typically urine is separated at the source by urine separating toilets (aka partitioned toilets) or Urinals.  Urine is collected, preferably in undiluted form to reduce the storage volume needed. Urine is stored to allow urea to hydrolyze which in turn raises the the pH to ~9 (Maurer, et al., 2006). The high pH will inactivate pathogens over time, especially under warmer conditions. Storing for six months above 20°C reduces the risk of contracting an illness to 5.4x10<sup>-4</sup> per instance of direct ingestion (Schönning, 2001).
 ==Operating Requirements and Conditions==

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 <!-- Only briefly state anything that the StemNode Diagrams can cover within subsystems.  This section is often omitted for specific systems (manuals on a specific make, model, or serial number) -->
 Urine is often free of pathogens, however pathogens can be present in the urine of unhealthy people, or pathogens can be introduced via contamination from feces during collection.  Typically urine is separated at the source by urine separating toilets (aka partitioned toilets) or Urinals.  Urine is collected, preferably in undiluted form to reduce the storage volume needed. If urine is allowed to sit, urea will hydrolyze, eventually raising the pH to ~9 (Maurer, et al., 2006). The high pH will inactivate pathogens over time, especially under warmer conditions. Storing for six months above 20°C reduces the risk of contracting an illness to 5.4x10<sup>-4</sup> per instance of direct ingestion (Schönning, 2001).
 ==Operating Requirements and Conditions==

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:30, 8 November 2018
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	<!--Discuss Variations or modification on the System -->		<!--Discuss Variations or modification on the System -->

		+	==Soil Based Agriculture==
		+	===Cabbage Production===
		+	Urine fertilized cabbage has been shown to be a comparable substitute to industrial fertilizers. Levels of chloride were higher compared to industrial-fertilized plots applied with the same amount of overall nitrogen. Brassica's, including cabbage, are known to be more salt tolerant and could therefore be more suited to urine fertilizer (Marschner, 2012). Tastes of the produced cabbage was reported to be similar. (https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/jf0717891).
		+
		+	==Urine Based Hydroponics==

	==Instances of the System==		==Instances of the System==

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 <!--Use metric base units (Kg, L, m, A, cd, mol) where practical, with the exception of temperature which should be in Celsius instead of Kelvin. Chemical and biochemical processes should be in molar ratios. Alternate units can be placed in parentheses -->
-The average person excretes 1.25 liters of urine a day(Schönning, 2001). It is difficult to link exact inputs to outputs because storage conditions will determine water loss which can concentrate the nutrients and some nitrogen may be lost as ammonia goes through nitrification and denitrification to form nitrogen gas.  The treated urine is typically diluted after storage treatment and dilution rates of one to two parts water per part urine are common (http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/wastewater/urineguidelines.pdf).
+The average person excretes 1.25 liters of urine a day (Schönning, 2001). It is difficult to link exact inputs to outputs because storage conditions will determine water loss which can concentrate the nutrients and some nitrogen may be lost as ammonia goes through nitrification and denitrification to form nitrogen gas.  The treated urine is typically diluted after storage treatment and dilution rates of one to two parts water per part urine are common (http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/wastewater/urineguidelines.pdf).
 '''Major Nutrients excreted in kg/person/year from people in Sweden and Kenya. Both Urine and Faeces shown for comparison.'''

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 The average person excretes 1.25 liters of urine a day(Schönning, 2001). It is difficult to link exact inputs to outputs because storage conditions will determine water loss which can concentrate the nutrients and some nitrogen may be lost as ammonia goes through nitrification and denitrification to form nitrogen gas.  The treated urine is typically diluted after storage treatment and dilution rates of one to two parts water per part urine are common (http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/wastewater/urineguidelines.pdf).
-'''Major Nutrients excreted in kg/person/year from people in Sweden and Kenya. Both Urine and Faeces shown for comparison'''
+'''Major Nutrients excreted in kg/person/year from people in Sweden and Kenya. Both Urine and Faeces shown for comparison.'''
 {| class="wikitable sortable"
 |-
-! Nitrogen
+!Country, Excrement
-! Phosporus
+!Nitrogen
-! Pottasium
+!Phosporus
 |-
 | Kenya, urine
@@ Line 58: / Line 59: @@
 | 0.37
 | 0.9
-| -
+|-
 | Kenya, faeces
 | 0.3
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 http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/wastewater/urineguidelines.pdf
-'''Concentration of Nutrients in Urine. A dilution of 2:1 is shown for typical soil agriculture application while a dilution of 14:1 is shown to achieve concentrations suitable for hydroponics for most nutrients.  All concentrations in g/L '''
+'''Concentration of Nutrients in Urine. A dilution of 2:1 is shown for typical soil agriculture application while a dilution of 14:1 is shown to achieve concentrations suitable for hydroponics for most nutrients.  All concentrations in g/L. '''
 Concentration of Urine from (Kirchmann and Petterson, 1995)
 Typical Concentrations needed for Hydroponics (Raviv and Lieth, 2007)

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 | -
 |}
 ==Ratios of Inputs to Outputs==

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 <!--Relay any broader impact-->
-Human urine contributes most of the nutrients to wastewater, but is typically less than 1% of its volume (Maurer, Pronk, & Larsen, 2006). Nitrogen is the most abundant nutrient in urine. Urine contains 89% of the nitrogen that is excreted from the human body (Vinneras & Jonsson, 2002). For treatment plants using activated sludge processes approximately 50% of the energy consumed is for ammonia as N<sub>2<sub> to the atmosphere (Goldstein & Smith, 2002). Simultaneously, 1% of world energy is used to turn atmospheric N<sub>2<sub> into ammonia for fertilizer and other products (Maurer, et al., 2006). The release of this nitrogen has caused eutrophication of many waterways(Rockstrom et al., 2009). The potential benefits from reusing the nitrogen in urine are substantial. Reusing the phosphorus in urine is equally important. Urine contains 82% of the phosphorus excreted from the body(Vinneras & Jonsson, 2002). Phosphorus fertilizer is mined from rocks, which are non-renewable and are expected to peak in 2030 (Cordell, Drangert, & White, 2009). Phosphorus released into aquatic systems also contributes to eutrophication of waterways (Rockstrom, et al., 2009). Urine offers a renewable source of phosphorus. Higher tech solutions for urine reuse have been explored by NASA, but at an expense (Subbarao, Wheeler, & Stutte, 2000). Lower tech urine reuse has been researched and proven by the world health organization, in soil based agriculture, however this process is open to release of nutrients to the wider ecosystem the same as conventional fertilizers (Schönning, 2001).
+Human urine contributes most of the nutrients to wastewater, but is typically less than 1% of its volume (Maurer, Pronk, & Larsen, 2006). Nitrogen is the most abundant nutrient in urine. Urine contains 89% of the nitrogen that is excreted from the human body (Vinneras & Jonsson, 2002). For treatment plants using activated sludge processes approximately 50% of the energy consumed is for ammonia as N<sub>2</sub> to the atmosphere (Goldstein & Smith, 2002). Simultaneously, 1% of world energy is used to turn atmospheric N<sub>2</sub> into ammonia for fertilizer and other products (Maurer, et al., 2006). The release of this nitrogen has caused eutrophication of many waterways(Rockstrom et al., 2009). The potential benefits from reusing the nitrogen in urine are substantial. Reusing the phosphorus in urine is equally important. Urine contains 82% of the phosphorus excreted from the body(Vinneras & Jonsson, 2002). Phosphorus fertilizer is mined from rocks, which are non-renewable and are expected to peak in 2030 (Cordell, Drangert, & White, 2009). Phosphorus released into aquatic systems also contributes to eutrophication of waterways (Rockstrom, et al., 2009). Urine offers a renewable source of phosphorus. Higher tech solutions for urine reuse have been explored by NASA, but at an expense (Subbarao, Wheeler, & Stutte, 2000). Lower tech urine reuse has been researched and proven by the world health organization, in soil based agriculture, however this process is open to release of nutrients to the wider ecosystem the same as conventional fertilizers (Schönning, 2001).
 =Principles of Operation=