A university urinal is being used to test the effectiveness of urine-powered microbial fuel cells.
The prototype toilet is the result of a partnership between researchers at the West of England (UWE Bristol) and Oxfam. It is hoped the urine-power technology will light cubicles in refugee camps, which are often dark and dangerous places particularly for women.
Students and staff are being asked to use the urinal, which is located near the Student Union bar, to donate urine to fuel microbial fuel cell (MFC) stacks that generate electricity to power indoor lighting.
The research team is led by Prof Ioannis Ieropoulos , director of the Bristol BioEnergy Centre located in the Bristol Robotics Laboratory at UWE Bristol.
In a statement Prof Ieropoulos said: ‘The microbial fuel cells work by employing live microbes which feed on urine [fuel] for their own growth and maintenance.
‘The MFC is in effect a system which taps a portion of that biochemical energy used for microbial growth, and converts that directly into electricity – what we are calling urine-tricity or pee power. This technology is about as green as it gets, as we do not need to utilise fossil fuels and we are effectively using a waste product that will be in plentiful supply.’
The urinal on the University campus resembles toilets used in refugee camps by Oxfam to make the trial as realistic as possible. The technology that converts the urine into power sits underneath the urinal and can be viewed through a clear screen.
Andy Bastable, Head of Water and Sanitation at Oxfam, says, ‘It is always a challenge to light inaccessible areas far from a power supply. This technology is a huge step forward. Living in a refugee camp is hard enough without the added threat of being assaulted in dark places at night. The potential of this invention is huge.’
Prof Ieropoulos and Bastable believe the cheap, sustainable aspect of this technology – which relies on the abundant, free supply of urine – makes it practical for aid agencies to use in the field.
Prof Ieropoulos said: ‘One microbial fuel cell costs about £1 to make, and we think that a small unit like the demo we have mocked up for this experiment could cost as little as £600 to set up, which is a significant bonus as this technology is in theory everlasting.’
The Urine-tricity project is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the wider Microbial Fuel Cell work is funded by the EPSRC.
In 2011 Dr Ioannis Ieropoulos, Prof John Greenman and Prof Chris Melhuish from Bristol Robotics Lab published ’Urine utilisation by microbial fuel cells; energy fuel for the future’ in Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics . Click here to read more.
A dissapointing article typical of a tabloid it lacks any details of W/L or similar indication of just how much (or little) energy is available or the storage capabilities.
Some comparison against solar/battery would have been worthy of an article written by and for engineers.
This looks like a commendable invention and I wish it success.
I was forced to think that if it were used in Parliament along with hot air turbines, London could be powered cheaply.
Urine the money with this one ! Well they started the puns
“…the urinal, which is located near the Student Union bar…”
So it’s an ethanol fuel cell
I think it will open to a new world where everything’s useful and nothing has to be wasted…free from oil dependence
Interesting to learn n foresee good development on this subject.wwould like to know if we can conduct few trails at rural.India.
As to my knowledge most refugee camps currently are on the african continent, surely Solar would be the way to go.
Even the small lights that we ‘westerners’ adorn our gardens with at £1 – £2 retail would work out significantly better value than a £600 unit (set-up) as described.
Also surely a simple salt water cell could be easily used on urine, also, designed for re-cyclability through the relevant camp running organisation again another cheap and easy possible soultion.
While the technology development is interesting and commendable, I do often wonder if some universities are simple doing R&D into non-problems that could be solved simply by adoption of exisiting (cheaper) OTS solutions.
A project to which I had the opportunity to contribute in the 70s was specification of fabric to enhance the operation of a solar-still: part of pilots’ survival kit (ejection into Sea, desert) and to be used to convert urine and salt water to a drinkable state . I take Geof’s point about un-necessary R&D: but Universities have found a wonderful new source of funds in Bill Gates generosity? Mike B
I can buy 20W solar panels for about £25 on ebay, why do they want to pay £600?
@Mike
A solar still i understand and have indeed used in the desert myself (I was groundcrew however not pilot), but that leads to an interseting point perhaps the uni’s could pick up on.
A solar still that also functions as a power generator, urine in drinking water and power out. In the correct environment that could be a very useful item. Powering two way radio, healthcare equipment etc in remote locations as well as offering clean drinking water or water for wound washing.
Whats the address for the Gates foundation…….? Mike, Joint IP?? 🙂
I don’t think that it is reasonable to make a cost comparison between a prototype of a technology that is being developed and a mature product that is being mass produced such as a solar panel.
The point is that we need to see how far this idea can be developed and if the trial benefits some people in a refugee camp then that is a side benefit.
The objective isn’t to just give lights to refugee camps.
It is to make light out of a waste product.
Geof Iason:
delighted to read on someone actually using a device I helped to create! Your additional ideas seem first class too!
I do not know Bill Gates address…but Leeds University (Prof Carl Lawrence!) were/are doing work on impregnated/enhanced malaria netting, funded by his foundation.
Interestingly, Airbourne Industries (where the solar still was developed) also created barrage balloons (WWII) and the inflatable armoured vehicles used to ‘create’ fake armour for Patton, Montgomery,etc
Another idea suggested (during work on enhanced life-jackets) to prolong life in v cold water (ie N Sea etc) was to incorporate an LSD impregnated rope into the life-jacket: and encourage pilots to chew it. Two advantages: if they were picked-up it gave them ‘longer’ before hypothermia set in..as they would not struggle: if not…they were already off with the fairies! and would leave the planet on a high! The feeling was that such was not a great idea as the pilots might have a chew before necessary! hey Ho
Mike B
I’m curious about the urine after the MFCs have finished with it. Is it purified to potable water, or more easily processed into potable water? If so, that would greatly magnify the system’s functionality. Clean water for drinking, cooking and at least minimal hygiene is also often in short supply in refugee camps and similar emergency situations.