Design of a novel wastewater reuse system for space station based on urea electrooxidation technology

Abstract

The replenishment of water resources in a space station is essential for achieving an astronaut's long-term and on-orbit residence. Recycling his or her urine is one of important and major ways of wastewater recovery. However, traditional urine treatment methods have the disadvantages of equipment that takes large space, complex procedures and low atomic utilization. Therefore, this paper designs a novel wastewater reuse system that treats urine based on urea electrooxidation technology, introduces methane fuel cell coupled with the Sabatier reactor and hydrogen-oxygen fuel cell to further utilize urine treatment products and to allocate water resources precisely in the space station through designing grading treatment and dynamic control systems. The wastewater reuse system designed in the paper contributes to saving valuable space and reducing energy consumption during urine treatment, thus improving water recovery rate and optimizing resource allocation.