In a recent development inspired by Frank Herbert's sci-fi classic ‘Dune’, scientists have designed a spacesuit that is capable of recycling urine into drinking water. This innovative suit is currently in its prototype stage and can collect, purify, and return urine as drinkable water to astronauts within five minutes through a drinking tube.

According to the Guardian, the creators of this suit hope it can be used by the end of the decade.

Spacesuit
Image Source: Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv

Chris Mason from Cornell University in New York and Sofia Etlin, a researcher at Weill Cornell Medicine and co-designer of the suit, explained their motivation to address the shortcomings of current waste management solutions. Their detailed findings were published in the journal 'Frontiers in Space Technology'.

NASA currently uses the Maximum Absorbency Garment (MAG), a version of an adult diaper, to collect astronauts' waste. The waste is then processed by the International Space Station’s (ISS) waste management system. However, the designers of the new suit believe that this method is a waste of valuable resources.

In an interview with the New Scientist, Mason explained their development of an 8-kilogram device, roughly the size of a shoebox, that can recycle urine. The urine is collected via a cup made of moulded silicone, designed to fit around the genitalia with different shapes and sizes for men and women. This system activates automatically when the astronaut begins to urinate by using a moisture-activated vacuum pump connected to the silicone cup.

Spacesuit
Image Source: bio. Biography.com

The collected urine is directed to a filtration system that recycles it into water with 87% efficiency. This filtration system uses osmosis to extract water from the urine, and a pump to separate water from salt. The entire process of collecting and purifying 500ml of urine takes only five minutes. Also, the suit can purify water with electrolytes thereby providing astronauts with an energy drink.

The scientists surveyed astronauts before developing the suit and found widespread dissatisfaction with NASA’s MAG. Complaints included leakage, discomfort, unhygienic conditions, and even urinary tract infections (UTIs). Etlin shared that astronauts often felt they couldn't distinguish between urine and sweat while using MAGs. “It’s commonplace for the MAG to leak. The astronauts talk about how at a certain point they can’t tell whether it’s urine or sweat anymore. They’re like: ‘Yes, I’m an astronaut and this is a burden I have to bear,’” she was quoted as saying by the Guardian.

Etlin also highlighted the insufficiency of the current in-suit drink bags, which only hold one litre of water. This is inadequate for the planned longer-lasting lunar spacewalks, which can last up to 10 hours, and even 24 hours in emergencies. “Astronauts currently have only one litre of water available in their in-suit drink bags. This is insufficient for the planned longer-lasting lunar spacewalks, which can last 10 hours, and even up to 24 hours in an emergency,” she added.

You might also be interested in - NASA to give SpaceX $843 million contract to deorbit the International Space Station