2022-06-202022-06-207/10/2022ICES-2022-202https://hdl.handle.net/2346/89742Daniella Saetta, University of South Florida/NASA, USJason Fischer, Amentum, USJoshua Finn, The Bionetics Corporation, USTalon Bullard, University of South Florida, USAlexandra Smith, University of South Florida, USLawrence Koss, Amentum, USDaniel Yeh, University of South Florida, USOscar Monje, Amentum, USLuke Roberson, NASA, USICES500: Life Science/Life Support Research TechnologiesThe 51st International Conference on Environmental Systems was held in Saint Paul, Minnesota, US, on 10 July 2022 through 14 July 2022.A 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.application/pdfengWastewaterNutrient recoveryAlgaePhotobioreactorWaterEnvironmental control and life support systemsPresentation