Browsing by Author "Saetta, Daniella"
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Item Alternative Treatment of Crew Wastewater Using a Hybrid Membrane Technology(2023 International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2023-07-16) Bullard, Talon; Smith, Alexandra; Hoque, Benjamin; DeVito, Celia; Haarmann, Katrina; Akepeu, Flaubert; Ferret, Ana; Bair, Robert; Yeh, Daniel; Long, Paul; Collins, Melissa; Fehrenbach, Mark; Saetta, Daniella; Fischer, Jason; Roberson, LukeEnvironmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS) of future long-duration, deep-space human exploration missions should aspire to meet the following guiding principles: 1) perform robustly and reliably, 2) minimize consumables which are hazardous and/or require frequent resupply, 3) avoid the generation of hazardous byproducts, and 4) preserve opportunities for waste resource recovery in mature phases of the mission. As a water source, urine is difficult to treat due to its high nitrogen concentration, tendency for high pH, propensity to off-gas ammonia, and high mineral content. At the same time, urine contains a plethora of nutrients which should be preserved as fertilizer when crop production is needed. The current state-of-the-art technology, the urine processing assembly (UPA) aboard the International Space Station (ISS), meets the first guiding principle. The incorporation of bioregenerative elements into next-generation water management, combining microbiology with physicochemical processes, has the potential to address all the guiding principles. A Suspended Aerobic Membrane Bioreactor (SAMBR) with biological nutrient removal (BNR) capabilities was developed by the University of South Florida and Kennedy Space Center. Intended for partial gravity habitat, SAMBR serves as a hybrid alternative to current water treatment technologies to support closing the resource recovery loop. With its modular and flexible design, SAMBR�s operation can be customized to meet treatment requirements (nitrogen removal, conversion, or recovery) as dictated by mission scope. This proceeding presents preliminary research pertaining to: 1) design challenges in maximizing hydraulic throughput while minimizing mass and volume of the assembly; 2) capabilities for treating high nitrogen waste under steady and non-steady state conditions; and 3) measured performance parameters such chemical oxygen demand (COD), nitrogen conversion, nutrients, turbidity, and system throughput. Future research and development pertaining to further optimization on system safety, reliability, and expanded treatment capabilities will also be presented.Item Design and operation of Photomembrane Bioreactor (PMBR) to balance nitrogen in high-ammonia wastewater treatment effluents(51st International Conference on Environmental Systems, 7/10/2022) Saetta, Daniella; Fischer, Jason; Finn, Joshua; Bullard, Talon; Smith, Alexandra; Koss, Lawrence; Yeh, Daniel; Monje, Oscar; Roberson, LukeA flat-plate photomembrane bioreactor (PMBR) has been designed and used as one component of a bioregenerative water system at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC). PMBRs are systems that use a microalgae--bacteria consortium to treat high-nutrient water streams. The main goal of the PMBR at KSC is to balance the nitrogen cycle in the effluent of upstream anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR). The membrane component of the PMBR allows for biomass accumulation within the reactor to increase nutrient removal rates while producing a filtered permeate for downstream use. The upstream AnMBR releases bound nutrients in wastewater as it digests organic carbon without the presence of oxygen. The effluent is low in carbon and high in total nitrogen, mainly found in the ammonia-nitrogen form. The novelty of this system lies on its ability to nitrify ammonia to nitrate, creating a more suitable nitrogen fertilizer for downstream plant growth systems. This conference paper will present the PMBR design parameters, operation parameters, and lessons learned during its first 100 days. The PMBR has been able to convert a significant percentage of ammonia to nitrate, making it a suitable technology to create a sustainable nutrient source for plant growth systems. As the algal biomass grew via photosynthesis, carbon dioxide at concentrations equivalent to those found on the International Space Station (approximately 3000 ppm) was used to produce the oxygen needed for bacteria to nitrify the ammonia in the AnMBR effluent. Overall, this conference paper will detail how the PMBR technology designed in this project filled the gap between the AnMBR and downstream plant systems for lunar and planetary missions.Item Evaluation of Long-Term Microbial Regrowth in Slosh Water Tanks from the International Space Station(2023 International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2023-07-16) Roberson, Luke; Fischer, Jason; Saetta, Daniella; Franco, Carolina; Kodadad, Christina; Hummerick, Mary; Spern, Cory; Yeh, Daniel; Pickett, MelanieThe NASA Launch Services Program (LSP) maintained the SPHERES-Slosh experiment aboard the International Space Station (ISS) between 2013 and 2019. The purpose of the Slosh experiment was to examine how liquids move inside fuel tanks in a microgravity environment. These tanks were similar to water storage tanks planned for use aboard future space systems, where large dormant periods between crew-use will provide similar conditions for biological growth or chemical leaching. The water within the SLOSH tanks remained undisturbed for over five years after testing concluded, providing a unique sample for stored water under microgravity conditions without prior protocols for microbial control such as sterilization or addition of biocides. The Slosh storage tanks were returned to Kennedy Space Center (KSC) aboard SpaceX CRS-18 mission in November 2019. Upon return of the tanks, the water within each tank was analyzed to determine how the water chemistry and biology changed during its tenure in microgravity. The data obtained and described within this publication provided a basis and reasoning for planning water storage and purification treatment methods aboard ISS, Gateway, and future space habitats. Results demonstrated that low microbial concentrations were present within the water, as expected since no biocide treatment was employed, yet no extensive biofilm formation was observed after 5 years even in the presence of microbial food sources such as the polycarbonate structure and food color additives. This experimentation demonstrates that future biofilm studies should be performed on this type of experimental setup with proper controls aboard ISS to examine microbial regrowth to improve microbial control within space water systems.Item Lessons Learned from the Integration of Biological Systems in Series for Wastewater Treatment on Early Planetary Bases(51st International Conference on Environmental Systems, 7/10/2022) Fischer, Jason; Saetta, Daniella; Finn, Joshua; Bullard, Talon; Smith, Alexandra; Koss, Lawernce; Monje, Oscar; Yeh, Daniel; Roberson, LukeAs humans begin to explore and build sustainable early planetary bases on the Moon and Mars, the crew will need environmental control and life support systems (ECLSS) that are capable of recovering key biogenic elemental resources from waste streams for reuse. Resupply from Earth during these long-duration deep space missions is not feasible; therefore, the requirement for advanced technologies is paramount to the success of these missions. Under NASA�s Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) program the development of prototype bioreactors was established to help solve this resource recovery gap. The technology developed within the AES project utilizes 3 bioreactors to sustainably purify astronaut wastewater: An Organic Processor Assembly (OPA)/Anaerobic Membrane BioReactor and a Nutrient Processor Assembly (NPA) consisting of a PhotoMembrane BioReactor (PMBR) and a Suspended Aerobic Membrane BioReactor (SAMBR). In the early stages of the project, these subsystems were running independently for nominal and off-nominal testing and analysis. As the project progressed, the OPA and the PMBR were integrated as part of a bigger bioregenerative wastewater purification system. Integration of these two advanced biological systems required the merging of different electrical and operational control systems. This paper will describe the efforts required to link these systems as well as unforeseen issues that arose after integration. Lessons learned related to the integration of these two subsystems are presented and discussed.Item Management of Fecal Waste Utilizing a Hybrid Organic Processor Assembly Unit Designed for Resource Recovery(51st International Conference on Environmental Systems, 7/10/2022) Smith, Alexandra; Bullard, Talon; Saetta, Daniella; Hoque, Ben; Devito, Celia; Haarmann, Katrina; Yeh, Daniel; Bair, Robert; Long, Paul; Fehrenbach, Mark; Fischer, Jason; Roberson, LukeCurrent environmental control and life support system (ECLSS) technologies aboard the International Space Station (ISS) only recycle low strength wastewater (e.g. condensate, hygiene, urine) but not the organic wastes generated by the crew (e.g. fecal and unutilized food), these are considered a solid waste and processed as solid waste. The high water content (fecal material being ~75% water), complexity, high organic strength, and the presence of pathogens make fecal waste difficult to stabilize and process. An organic processor assembly (OPA) unit was developed through collaboration between the University of South Florida and NASA�s Kennedy Space Center to address the need to improve on the current fecal collection process. OPA1 is comprised of a hybrid technology that couples an anaerobic bioreactor with a tubular ultrafiltration membrane (AnMBR) designed to treat and recover resources from the solid organic waste stream of a crew of four astronauts on an early planetary base. Organic wastes are a rich source of nutrients (e.g. N,P,C). These can be recovered to supplement a fertilizer and water demand for potential in situ food crop and algae production, boosting crew nutrition and overall mental well-being. Aspects of OPA1�s initial run on a waste simulate was presented at ICES 2021. This conference paper will present OPA1�s current operating parameters of running for over 200 days, treating actual canine feces as a surrogate for crew metabolic wastes, showing the removal of 93% chemical oxygen demand (COD) and the retention of 99% total suspended solids to the bioreactor while recovering soluble nitrogen in the form of ammonia within the permeate. Overall, preliminary data highlights OPA1 as a capable candidate to bridge the gap between waste management and resource recovery as a next-generation technology capable stabilizing a problematic solid waste while treating and recovering resources from all available waste streams.Item Survey of Microbial Community in Bioreactors Used for Bioregenerative Water Purification(2023 International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2023-07-16) Saetta, Daniella; Bullard, Talon; Smith, Alexandra; Yeh, Daniel; Fischer, Jason; Dixit, Anirudha; Spern, Cory; Khodadad, Christina; Roberson, LukeBioregenerative water purification systems are promising ECLSS technologies because they allow for complete recovery of water and nutrients for sustainable planetary base operations. These systems use a consortium of microbes to treat complex waste streams that have generally been ignored thus far, such as fecal and food waste. However, the microbial community structure of the bioreactors is largely unknown. The main goal of this paper was to survey the microbial community of four distinct bioreactors to provide a deeper understanding of the bioreactors in terms of treatment and operational hazards. The survey encompassed four types of aerobic and anaerobic bioreactors with real and ersatz influents, giving a wide picture of the microbial community across a wide range of conditions. We used shotgun metagenomics to provide a comprehensive analysis of the community constituents, which included bacteria, viruses, archaea, and eucarya. The study sampled two identical anaerobic membrane bioreactors (one with canine fecal waste influent and one with an ersatz influent), a suspended aerobic membrane bioreactor (with real human urine as its influent), and a photo−membrane bioreactor (with anaerobic membrane bioreactor effluent as its influent). This is the first study of its kind to study the microbiome of bioreactors designed for early planetary wastewater treatment. Results show a high level of diversity among the samples, with higher DNA densities in the samples from the reactors with real fecal and urine influents. Overall, this conference paper will detail how the bioreactor conditions affected the microbial community structure and how the community structure influences the wastewater treatment process.Item Using Effluent from a Hybrid Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor Treating Fecal Waste for Hydroponic Fertigation of Pak Choi(2023 International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2023-07-16) Smith, Alexandra; Bullard, Talon; Saetta, Daniella; Fischer, Jason; Haarmann, Katrina; Nascimento Akepeu, Flaubert; Roberson, Luke; Yeh, DanielChallenges for future deep space ECLSS will include providing potable water, supplying nutritious food, and managing wastes generated by the crew. With next to no readily available resources to sustain human life on the Moon and Mars, nothing can be considered a waste, and every resource, including all organic wastes generated by the crew (e.g., fecal), should be deemed for recovery and reuse. Fecal waste aboard the International Space Station (ISS) is currently treated as solid waste and not recycled in any capacity. The high-water content (fecal material being ~75% water), complexity, and the presence of pathogens make fecal waste difficult to stabilize and process. However, fecal material contains considerable fractions of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and minerals which after stabilization, can be recovered and used as plant fertilizer. There is considerable research about growing food in Lunar and Martian greenhouses but a major limitation for plant growth will be continuously supplying fertilizer salts. Recognizing the need for a bioregenerative approach to fecal waste, an organic processor assembly (OPA) unit was developed through collaboration between the University of South Florida and NASA’s Kennedy Space. OPA is a hybrid, physical-biological treatment technology that couples an anaerobic bioreactor with a tubular ultrafiltration membrane. OPA is designed to treat and recover resources from the solid organic waste stream of a crew of four astronauts on an early planetary base. Aspects of OPA’s long-term operations and water quality treatment analysis were presented at ICES 2022. This conference paper will present preliminary research regarding the downstream use of OPA’s nutrient-rich effluent, produced from an actual fecal influent, in supporting the growth of extra dwarf bok choy from germination to maturity. Overall, OPA1 is an enabling technology demonstrating its potential to minimize fecal storage volume and assist in waste management, while additionally offsetting fertilizer demand.