Rocket Science Used to Design Self-Sufficient Water Treatment Plant
- Aug 03, 2010 2:10 PM EST
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A pair of engineers at Stanford have created a design that both reduces greenhouse gases and provides energy for water treatment plants. And it's all done through rocket science. By actually producing both methane and nitrous oxide--both greenhouse gases themselves--the process then utilizes the harmful gases as resources.
It begins with removing nitrates from waste water, a process that produces the two different gases. The methane is then harvested as a form of fuel used to run the plant, while the nitrous oxide is burned off in a rocket thruster, leaving nothing but harmless hot air.
"When it decomposes, nitrous oxide breaks down into pure nitrogen and oxygen gas," aeronautics and astronautics professor and one half of the engineering duo Brian Cantwell explained. "At the same time, it releases enough energy to heat an engine to almost 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit, making it red hot, and it shoots out of the engine at almost 5,000 feet per second, producing enough thrust to propel a rocket."
The new design has the potential to create waste-water management plants that are entirely self-sufficient, which could be especially beneficial in poorer countries.
"If successful, this technology could be a game changer, with the potential for worldwide impact on several fronts," said Craig Criddle, a civil and environmental engineering professor and the other half of the design team. "You even have the prospect of installing a wastewater facility where there is no energy source. This could be especially important in the Third World, where millions of people live with contaminated water."
Image courtesy of Brian Cantwell, Stanford