Waste processing apparatus
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current human waste processing technologies, such as non-flushing and chemical toilets, are energy intensive, generate harmful emissions, and require significant resources, failing to provide an environmentally sustainable and efficient solution for waste management in regions with poor sanitation facilities.
Innovation Solution
A modular waste processing system that separates and processes human waste through a combination of pyrolysis for solid waste and membrane distillation for liquid waste, minimizing emissions and resource use, with the goal of creating a safe, biologically benign product suitable for disposal or reuse.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If incinerator toilets are used to kill bacteria and pathogens, then sanitation effectiveness is improved, but energy consumption increases and harmful gases are emitted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the temperature parameter from high-temperature incineration to low-temperature drying and pasteurization. The drying phase operates at temperatures below 105°C and the pasteurization phase at temperatures between 70-100°C, which are sufficient to kill pathogens while consuming significantly less energy than traditional incineration methods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes phase transition of water from liquid to vapor during the drying phase to remove moisture from feces. This phase change occurs at low temperatures and effectively dries the waste material without requiring high-energy combustion processes, thereby reducing energy consumption while maintaining sanitation effectiveness.
2Reliability
If incinerator toilets are used to kill bacteria and pathogens, then sanitation effectiveness is improved, but harmful gas emissions increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the temperature parameter from high-temperature incineration to low-temperature drying and pasteurization. The drying phase operates at temperatures below 105°C and the pasteurization phase at temperatures between 70-100°C, which are sufficient to kill pathogens while consuming significantly less energy than traditional incineration methods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the harmful effect of moisture (which promotes bacterial growth) into a beneficial drying process that eliminates pathogens through controlled low-temperature evaporation. The moisture removal itself becomes the mechanism for sanitation rather than requiring high-temperature combustion that produces harmful emissions.
3Reliability
If chemical toilets are used to minimize odours and inhibit bacteria, then sanitation effectiveness is improved, but chemical consumption and holding tank size increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the chemical treatment system with a thermal processing system. Instead of using biocides, alcohols, and ammonium-based compounds to inhibit bacteria, the system uses controlled heating at 70-100°C for pasteurization to achieve the same sanitation effect without requiring continuous chemical addition.
Solution Approach 2:
The thermal processing system is self-sustaining, using the heat generated during the drying phase to provide pasteurization in the subsequent phase. The system serves itself by utilizing the thermal energy already invested in the process, eliminating the need for external chemical inputs to maintain sanitation.
4Reliability
If chemical toilets are used to treat waste, then pathogen control is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a continuous thermal processing cycle where the drying phase transitions directly into the pasteurization phase. The thermal energy used for drying continues into the pasteurization phase, creating a continuous useful action that maintains pathogen control throughout the waste processing sequence without requiring additional energy inputs or chemical treatments.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively processes human waste in an energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable manner, reducing harmful emissions and resource consumption, while producing a safe product that can be reused or disposed of conveniently, addressing the challenges of inadequate sanitation and waste management.
Implementation Method 1
the present solid waste processing assembly and system is configured for torrefaction processing to convert generally solid biomass into a product char via a mild form of pyrolysis involving heating temperatures optionally between 200° C. to 350° C.
Implementation Method 2
a membrane distillation unit having a membrane distillation vessel with an internal filter membrane, a primary flow liquid inlet and outlet and a permeate flow outlet
Data Source
AI summary
A human waste processing system adapted to process both human solid and liquid waste deposited into a toilet or similar vessel and to process the waste for further use and/or convenient disposal. The present system is specifically configured for use with low-water-volume flush toilets and dry toilets. In particular, the present system is configured to separate solid waste and liquid waste with liquid waste being processed via a plurality of sequential filtration stages and with the solid waste being processed by thermal decomposition such as pyrolysis/torrefaction processing.