{"id":41620,"date":"2017-03-28T07:23:36","date_gmt":"2017-03-28T05:23:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/?p=41620"},"modified":"2017-03-26T10:54:17","modified_gmt":"2017-03-26T08:54:17","slug":"energy-from-toilet-wastewater-as-valuable-resource","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/energy-from-toilet-wastewater-as-valuable-resource\/","title":{"rendered":"Energy from Toilet – Wastewater as Valuable Resource"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wastewater is considered to be of no use \u2013 quite wrongly! Washing water has an average temperature of 30\u00b0C. Toilet water might not only be used to produce biogas or fertilizers, but also valuable resources that otherwise would enter the sewer system unused. And even worse: Annually, more than 2 million people die from diarrheal diseases due to the wrong use of wastewater. Experts of the \u201cWater-Energy Group\u201d of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) study possibilities to eliminate these problems.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"2017_036_Energie_aus_der_Toilette_72dpi\"
Caution, no drinking water. Only 0.3 percent of the water on the Earth\u2019s surface is suited for use as drinking water. KIT scientists study possibilities of improving wastewater use. (Photo: KIT)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Although about 72% of the Earth\u2019s surface are covered by water, only 0.3% are suited for use as drinking water. \u201cWith that in mind, wastewater is no waste. It contains thermal energy, chemical energy in the form of carbon compounds, and valuable plant nutrients. Now, we have to develop processes for the use of these resources,\u201d Helmut Lehn of the Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS)<\/a> says. Waste heat of domestic wastewater, for instance, might be used with the help of heat exchangers in sewage pipes. \u201cAnd it is even more effective to use the warm wastewater from the washing machine and the bathroom directly in the house for preheating fresh water for the shower,\u201d Witold Poganietz adds, who heads the research group together with Lehn. Such a system already is in operation in a housing block in Berlin.<\/p>\n

A major prerequisite for the intelligent use of wastewater is the separation of wastewater flows from the toilet (black water) and from the bathroom and kitchen (grey water), Lehn continues. If feces were removed separately and undiluted \u2013 by using e.g. vacuum toilets as on airplanes or ICEs \u2013 three liters of biogas might be produced from one liter of wastewater. \u201cAdding biowaste might even increase the energy yield and the organic waste bin would no longer be required,\u201d Lehn says. And he adds: \u201cUrine is an ideal fertilizer, as it contains nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus.\u201d As the latter is considered a non-renewable resource that is supposed to run short even before coal and petroleum, studies concentrate on recovering it from municipal wastewater and sewage sludge. This might also help reduce the demand for artificial fertilizers, whose production requires much energy.<\/p>\n

According to Franka Steiner, ITAS, the existing infrastructure will continue to require complex cleaning of mixed wastewaters, whereas separation of wastewater flows might be implemented easily in development areas, where new houses are built. This also applies to growing metropolitan areas in threshold and developing countries. \u201cHere, sanitary systems are often lacking completely,\u201d the geoecologist says. All over world, she advises municipal administrations in the planning of wastewater systems. A separation system that produces both energy and nutrients from the wastewater of several thousand inhabitants is being tested by the city of Hamburg in a conversion area. This project is observed by ITAS researchers with high interest.<\/p>\n

UN World Water Day Commemorates the Millions of Deaths Due to Wrong Use of Wastewater<\/h3>\n

To attract attention to the worldwide wastewater problem, the motto \u201cWastewater\u201d was chosen for this year\u2019s \u201cUnited Nations World Water Day\u201d on March 22. With good reason: According to the World Health Organization WHO, diarrheal diseases due to the improper use of wastewater cause 4% of all deaths worldwide, with increasing tendency.<\/p>\n

Many of the more than 2 million victims per year are children living in developing countries, Lehn says. For comparison: In 2015, about 440,000 people died from malaria (half as many as 15 years before) and 1.1 million people died from AIDS. ITAS researcher Lehn thinks that one reason of the increase in fatal diarrheal diseases is progressing urbanization with more and more people living in densely packed urban slums without hygienic wastewater treatment.<\/p>\n

ITAS Informs Citizens about Potential Uses of Wastewater<\/h3>\n

On Thursday, May 11, 6 to 9 p.m., visitors can inform themselves about potential uses of wastewater at the ITAS building (Karlstra\u00dfe 11, 76021 Karlsruhe). Experts of the \u201cWater-Energy Group\u201d and practitioners in the wastewater and development aid sectors are invited to give advice. \u201cCitizens will be informed about our current wastewater treatment system, potential alternative uses of wastewater, and the steps that have to be taken by house owners and municipalities,\u201d Helmut Lehn says.<\/p>\n

Relationships of Water, Energy, and Waste: ITAS Simulation at the World Water Week<\/h3>\n

At the World Water Week<\/a> in Stockholm from August 27 to September 01, 2017, the Water-Energy Group of ITAS will present a simulation. More than 3000 visitors from all over the world are expected to come to the event under the motto of \u201cWater and waste \u2013 reduce and reuse.\u201d \u201cOur simulation will highlight technoeconomic, sociocultural and ecological relationships of water, energy, and waste and we plan to design concepts for various urban contexts,\u201d Jasmin Friedrich says, whose studies focus on the water\u2013energy nexus.<\/p>\n

KIT Educates Specialists for the Sustainable Use of Water<\/h3>\n

Another contribution to solving the world\u2019s water problems is KIT\u2019s master\u2019s program \u201cWater, Science & Engineering.\u201d KIT offers interdisciplinary, research-oriented education at the interface of hydrological engineering and natural sciences. The program conveys expert knowledge in water engineering and natural sciences, including water technology and urban water management, hydrological engineering and hydraulics, environmental systems science and water resources management. The program is of international character, many of the courses are in English. Graduates qualify for responsible activities at planning and engineering offices, industrial companies, in the public service sector, international development cooperation, and science.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

About Karlsruhe Institute of Technology<\/h3>\n

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) pools its three core tasks of research, higher education, and innovation in a mission. With about 9,300 employees and 25,000 students, KIT is one of the big institutions of research and higher education in natural sciences and engineering in Europe.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wastewater is considered to be of no use \u2013 quite wrongly! Washing water has an average temperature of 30\u00b0C. Toilet water might not only be used to produce biogas or fertilizers, but also valuable resources that otherwise would enter the sewer system unused. And even worse: Annually, more than 2 million people die from diarrheal […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","nova_meta_subtitle":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5572],"tags":[],"supplier":[1563],"class_list":["post-41620","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bio-based","supplier-karlsruher-institut-fuer-technologie-kit"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41620","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41620"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41620\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41620"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41620"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41620"},{"taxonomy":"supplier","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/supplier?post=41620"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}