“ That ’s strange , ” you might be thinking . “ Surely the Gates can get to the very good that the wide world of toilets has to bid . ” And you ’d be correct — but that still would n’t make their can that much comfortably than anyone else ’s . In fact , odds are in high spirits that the Gates ’ toilet is believably pretty interchangeable to your commode , my lav , and just about everyone else ’s lavatory . Everyone , that is , besidesthe estimated 1.1 billion people worldwidewho have no privy at all .
See , the basic water - wealthy design of the toilet and its connection to a sewage or septic system of rules has actually been around since the late 18th 100 ; and from a functional standpoint not a peck about this concept has changed . But for much of the world , especially where fresh water and sanitation are major issues , our outdated bathroom technology is utterly impractical . We take toilets that work in division of the human race without sewage systems and pass urine — and that can transubstantiate waste into energy , clean body of water , and nutrient .
That ’s why the Gates want a new toilet , and are offer one thousand thousand of dollar to people building one .
To achieve this , the Gates present theirReinvent the Toilet Challenge :
The Water , Sanitation & Hygiene course of study of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation recently challenged 22 university to submit proposals for how to contrive a waterless , hygienic toilet that is secure and affordable for people in the get world and does n’t have to be join to a sewer . Eight university were awarded grants to “ reinvent the toilet . ”
Here are the eight universities and scientists awarded Duncan Grant to reinvent the ancient technology of the crapper , and the innovative way they ’re aiming to do so , as delineate in the WSH : Reinvent the Toilet ChallengeFact Sheet :
1 . A pot that produces biologic charcoal , minerals , and clean water
Professor M. Sohail of Loughborough University and his squad propose to develop a toilet to transform feces into a highly energetic combustible through a process combining hydrothermal carbonization of fecal sludge followed by combustion . The cognitive process will be powered by the warmth generated during the combustion form and will recover water and table salt from fecal matter and weewee .
2 . Turning the privy into an electrical energy generator for local use of goods and services
Professor Georgios Stefanidis and his team at Delft University of Technology pop the question to develop a commode system that will apply microwave technology to metamorphose human waste into electricity . The wasteland will be gasified using plasma , which is created by microwaves in sartor - made equipment . This physical process will soften syngas , a mixture of carbon monoxide ( CO ) and hydrogen ( H2 ) . The syngas will then be fed to a upstanding oxide fuel cell stack for electricity coevals . This toilet system will be able-bodied to suffice single households or chemical group of households .
3 . A urine - diverting toilet that recovers white water on site
Professor Tove Larsen of the Swiss Federal Institute of
Aquatic Science and Technology and Dr. Harald Gründl of the industrial design party EOOS offer to project and construct a functional example of a urine - diverting toilet that recovers water and is user - friendly , attractive , hygienic , and provide water supply for cleansing .
4 . A community toilet block that mineralize human waste matter and recovers clean water , nutrient , and vim
Professor Christopher Buckley and his team at the University of Kwazulu - Natal propose to design , prototype , and evaluate a toilet arrangement that can safely discard of pollutants and find valuable cloth such as piddle and carbon dioxide from urine in residential district lav blocks .
5 . A community scale biochar output plant fed by human waste
Brian Von Herzen of the Climate Foundation and Professor Reginald Mitchell of Stanford University in Palo Alto , California , propose to design , construct , and test a self- hold system that pyrolyzes ( decomposes organic cloth at high temperatures without O ) human waste matter into a type of biological charcoal ( biochar ) that is used for atomic number 6 capture and storage . The system will be capable to process two tons of human waste daily at a facility located in the slum area of Nairobi .
6 . A sewer that uses mechanically skillful dehydration and smoldering of feces to recover imagination and muscularity
Professor Yu - Ling Cheng and her squad from the University of Toronto Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry suggest to develop a engineering for treat unanimous waste streams through mechanical dehydration and smoldering that will sanitize feces within 24 hours . They also intend to develop a method acting for hygienize urine through membrane filtration and ultra- violet disinfection . Their third expanse of research will be on user - centrical design to find out a preferred interface that creates requirement to practice the throne technology .
7 . A solar - powered toilet that generates atomic number 1 and electricity for local habit
Professor Michael Hoffman of the California Institute of Technology project to design a self - arrest , solar - power domesticated toilet and wastewater discourse organization . The solar panel will convert the sun ’s rays into enough energy to power an electrochemical nuclear reactor that Hoffmann designed to conk out down water and human waste product into hydrogen gas . The gas can then be stored in hydrogen fuel cells to provide a backup energy source for nighttime operation or for use under depleted - sunshine term .
8 . A pneumatic flush urine - diversionary attack drying up toilet
Professor How Yong Ng and his squad at the National University of Singapore aim to search the development of a decentralized modified pneumatic scour weewee - diversion dehydration community sewer block for five to six households with separate collection and treatment of piddle and faecal matter to recover water and nutrients . The john system will go back energy from feces combustion and clean water from advance adsorption desalinization .
you’re able to read more about the Reinvent the Toilet Challenge and the Water , Sanitation , and Hygiene Program over atThe Gates Foundation .
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