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Combustion Agent: Feasibility Of Urine Utilization Technology Evaporation

Method In The Developing World

A Research Proposal

Presented to the Faculty of the

Mechanical Engineering Department

College of Engineering

Mindanao State University

General Santos City

In Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirements

In

ME 195: Research Methods

By

Maireen G. Uno

First Semester

SY 2018-2019
CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM AND THE SETTING

Introduction

The recovery of nutrients from excreta is one approach to satisfy the


currently unmet sanitation needs of the developing world while providing a
sustainable source of nutrients for fertilizer and other needs such as fuel or energy
source. Utilizing source-separated urine, which contains the majority of nutrients
and is significantly less dangerous to handle than feces, is an important aspect of
nutrient recovery. While there is interest in applying urine utilization technologies
in the developing world, there is not always emphasis environmental implications
or on how methods would operate in different situations. In this thesis economic,
logistic, scientific, and environmental criteria were created and used to judge urine
treatment method evaporation.

Evaporation was selected as the most feasible and studied in the


context of SOIL, an organization that provides urine-diverting dry toilets to
households in urban areas. This thesis found that treatment of the predicted urine
production would require an unreasonable amount of space for an urban
household. The treatment process is likely to significantly contribute to
hygienization and possibly to degradation of micropollutants. Further research into
the application of nutrient recovery from urine in the developing world is
recommended.

In domestic wastewater, about 75% of total nitrogen and 50% of total


phosphorus originates from human urine. Urine contains high concentration of
nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, therefore, it can be a potential nutrient
source for microalgae. The harvested algal biomass can be used as, at least, a
fertiliseror extracted for valuable compounds. Technical challenges are to
optimize growth and nutrient recovery efficiency as well as an efficient use of light
for the microalgae cultivated on concentrated urine.
(https://www.wur.nl/en/show/Microalgae-for-Nutrient-Recovery-from-Human-Urin
e.htm)

Theoritical/Conceptual Framework

This study is in need to produce greater calorific heat value from


bamboo powder with the variable concentrated general human urine.
Evaporation process the method to be use in doing the study wherein the subject
is to be exposed to the environment. Water will be separated from the other
chemical compositions by the heat of the sun. It is the method where the the
nutrients will be in concentrated form. Then, dried bamboo powder with
concentrated urine will be collected and to be put in a low pressure container for
testing its possibility to produce more energy.

Variable

There will be a two sets of variables that can be used in this study,
independent, and dependent.
The independent variable is the volume of human urine needed to produce a
sufficient solid fuel. The dependent variable is the location to do the evaporation
method and the temperature.

Statement Of The Problem

This study designed to determine if there is any significant production of


heat from the concentrated human urine. Specifically this study aims to provide
the answer to the following questions:

1. Will it be possible to recover nutrients from the human urine?


2. How Effective does evaporation method in producing solid fuel from
human urine?
3. How effective does using concentrated human urine to produce more
heat ?
4. Will it be better adding concentrated human urine to the fuel than purely
other organic sources?

Assumptions

The concentrated human urine can be give more heat in combining it


from other solid fuel using the evaporation method.

Null Hypothesis

There is no changes in adding concentrated human urine from the


bamboo powder through evaporation method.

Importance Of The Study

This study can be helpful to everyone especially to the following


groups:

For The Students. This study aims to provide sufficient knowledge about
evaporation urine utilizing can be more effective for the developing world, and the
environmental effect of the said method will be considered. It will give them
knowledge about a lot of methods available in urine utilizing technologies.

For The Society. This study awakens the next generation for the other possibilities
in producing more energy which is affordable and available all the time.

For the Government. This study encourages the government to support simple but
efficient way in producing more energy, for it could be a great help for the
country especially in the urban areas.
For The Engineering Society. This study is more helpful especially for
environmental engineering. This study shows the innovative use of human urine
and more possible things could do with human urine. It is not just a simple waste
of a human but an important waste of human that just need to utilize and put focus
for a lot of nutrients is in human urine which can be recovered through a lot
methods available.

Scope And Delimitation

This study will focus on the feasibility and environmental implications of


urine utilization using evaporation method in the developing world. The production
process will be taken by one family that will produce the urine. The proposed
system can be done in the rooftop for exposing the human urine to absorbs more
heat from the sun for evaporation of the water content in the urine.

CHAPTER 2

Urine

Urine is a liquid byproduct of the body secreted by the kidneys through a process
called urination and excreted through the urethra. The normal chemical
composition of urine is mainly water content, but it also includes nitrogenous
molecules, such as urea, as well as creatinine and other metabolic waste
components. Other substances may be excreted in urine due to injury
or infection of the glomeruli of the kidneys, which can alter the ability of
the nephron to reabsorb or filter the different components of blood plasma.

Normal Chemical Composition of Urine

Urine is an aqueous solution of greater than 95% water, with a minimum of these
remaining constituents, in order of decreasing concentration:

 Urea 9.3 g/L.


 Chloride 1.87 g/L.
 Sodium 1.17 g/L.
 Potassium 0.750 g/L.
 Creatinine 0.670 g/L .
 Other dissolved ions, inorganic and organic compounds
(proteins, hormones, metabolites).

Urine is sterile until it reaches the urethra, where epithelial cells lining the urethra
are colonized by facultatively anaerobic gram-negative rods and cocci. Urea is
essentially a processed form of ammonia that is non-toxic to mammals, unlike
ammonia, which can be highly toxic. It is processed from ammonia and carbon
dioxide in the liver.

(https://chem.libretexts.org/Textbook_Maps/Introductory_Chemistry/Map%3A_Fu
ndamentals_of_General_Organic_and_Biological_Chemistry_(McMurry_et_al.)/2
9%3A_Body_Fluids/29.8%3A_Urine_Composition_and_Function)

A Representative Chemical Composition of Urine

Water (H2O): 95%

Urea (H2NCONH2): 9.3 g/l to 23.3 g/l

Chloride (Cl-): 1.87 g/l to 8.4 g/l

Sodium (Na+): 1.17 g/l to 4.39 g/l

Potassium (K+): 0.750 g/l to 2.61 g/l

Creatinine (C4H7N3O): 0.670 g/l to 2.15 g/l

Inorganic sulfur (S): 0.163 to 1.80 g/l

Lesser amounts of other ions and compounds are present, including hippuric acid,
phosphorus, citric acid, glucuronic acid, ammonia, uric acid, and many others.
Total solids in urine add up to around 59 grams per person. Note compounds you
ordinarily do not find in human urine in appreciable amounts, at least compared
with blood plasma, include protein and glucose (typical normal range 0.03 g/l to
0.20 g/l). The presence of significant levels of protein or sugar in urine indicates
potential health concerns.

The pH of human urine ranges from 5.5 to 7, averaging around 6.2. The specific
gravity ranges from 1.003 to 1.035.

Significant deviations in pH or specific gravity may be due to diet, drugs, or urinary


disorders.

(https://www.thoughtco.com/the-chemical-composition-of-urine-603883)

Everyone is different, but most people need to empty their bladders up to eight
times a day. That can change depending on how much you eat and drink,
especially caffeine and alcohol. It could be a side effect of medications, too.
Pregnant women and older people usually have to go more often than others.

If you notice you suddenly have to pee more often than usual, though, it could be
a sign of a health problem such as a UTI, kidney disease, diabetes, an enlarged
prostate in men, vaginitis in women, or a problem with the wall of your bladder
called interstitial cystitis.

If you often feel that you suddenly “gotta go” and sometimes can’t get to the
bathroom in time, you may have overactive bladder. It’s a common condition for
older men and women, though it’s not a normal part of aging. Your doctor can tell
you how to treat it with lifestyle changes and medications.

Chemical Elements in Human Urine

The element abundance depends on diet, health, and hydration level, but human
urine consists of approximately:

Oxygen (O): 8.25 g/l


Nitrogen (N): 8/12 g/l
Carbon (C): 6.87 g/l
Hydrogen (H): 1.51 g/l
(https://www.webmd.com/urinary-incontinence-oab/truth-about-urine#2)

CHAPTER III

Research Method

This research involves actual experimental methods for the research.


The experimental method of research will be going to have a system for the urine
for the evaporation method .After which, the water is separated from the other
elements and become concentrated we add bamboo powder until the chance to
get dried. After which, it will be collected from that system and put in another
system for next test putting the dried concentrated urine with bamboo powder in a
solid container and put a flame on it . The researcher aims to investigate and
evaluate the performance of the system and utilizes experimentation method
based on dependent variables.

Research Instruments and Materials

The Material instruments used on conducting the experiment are as


follows:

Construction of Evaporation System unit


*Glass
*ply wood
*Epoxy
*Pipe

For burning Test


*Bomb Calorimeter (If available)

Steps and Procedure


This following procedure must be followed by the researcher to make the
experiment organized and well

1. Put the urine in the container and exposed it to the heat of the sun until the
water evaporates
2. Wait for the moment that the other composition of the urine are in concentrated
3. Add the bamboo powder to the concentrated urine until it gets dry
4. Gather all the bamboo powder with concentrated urine and
5. Test if there is any changes in adding concentrated urine to the basic fuel.

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