Advancing Nutrient Recovery through Urine-Derived Fertilizers (UDF) in the United States
Dylan Raye-Leonard and Audrey PallmeyerUniversity of Michigan
“Implementing water resource recovery principles has the potential for improving environmental, economic, and social outcomes and for achieving a paradigm shift from simply managing wastewater to the sustainable management of resources”
-MWEA Water Resource Recovery Leadership Summit Recap (2017)
MWEA and Nutrient Resource Recovery
Rethinking Resource Recovery
CNP
N2 CO2
CNPMined
Phosphorus
Nitrogen Fixation
Conventional Nutrient Cycling
What is in Wastewater?
Human waste is less than 1% of the volume of wastewater
(Larsen & Gujer, 1996)
Human Waste by Mass
Urine comprises the
majority of the mass of
human waste
Wet Dry
(Vinneras & Jonsson, 2002)
Nutrient Content of Human Waste
Urine contains 87% of
the Nitrogen and 66%
of the Phosphorus in
human waste
PhosphorusNitrogen
(Meinzinger & Oldenburg, 2009)
Micropollutants in Human Waste
On average, urine
contains over half of
pharmaceuticals in
human waste
(Lienert et al., 2007)
Urine Diversion Nutrient Cycling
CNP
N2 CO2
CNP
Food
Fertilizer
Urine Diversion and Urine-Derived Fertilizer (UDF) May:
Reduce the energy associated with fertilizer production and treatment of
nutrient-polluted water
Enhance food security by recovering nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in food
Reduce water consumption by reducing flushing, and improve water quality
PhosphorusNitrogen
Is this really new?
Is this really new? The Rich Earth Institute - Brattleboro, VT -
Is this really new? Hampton Roads Sanitation District- Virginia Beach, VA -
Is this really new?
Is this really new?
INFEWS Project
● Processing Technologies
● Public Perception
● Life Cycle Impacts
● Regulatory Environment
● Industry Requirements
Photo Credit: Joseph Xu
What if Urine Never Became Sewage?
Co
llect
ion
Pro
cess
ing
Photo Credit: Joseph Xu
Pro
cess
ing
Ap
plic
atio
n
Public Perception Research
What did you think of the urine-diverting facility?
What did you think of the urine-diverting facility?
Would you consider eating food grown with a Urine-Derived Fertilizer?
Would you consider eating food grown with a Urine-Derived Fertilizer?
Does viewing the “Uri” Animations impact perceptions of Urine and UDF?
Does viewing the “Uri” Animations impact perceptions of Urine and UDF?
Ongoing Research: Surveys, Interviews, and Focus Groups
What drives attitudes toward acceptance of UDFs?
What key stakeholders should be involved in
implementing broadscale Urine Diversion?
● Farmers
● Consumers
● Legislators
● Regulators
● Wastewater Treatment Operators and Technicians!
Advancing Nutrient Recovery through Urine-Derived Fertilizers (UDF) in the United States
Principal Investigators: Nancy G. Love, Diana S. Aga, Rebecca Hardin, Abraham Noe-Hays & Krista Wigginton
Contributing Senior Personnel: Charles B. Bott, Glen T. Daigger, Joseph Eisenberg, Greg Keoleian, Linda Macpherson, Kim Nace, Tatiana Schreiber & Steven Skerlos
Student and Staff Contributors: Arthur Davis, Stephen Hilton, Heather Goetsch, Phoebe Gooding, Nick Lowe, Waylan Mui, Audrey Pallmeyer, Neil Patel, Dylan Raye-Leonard, Enrique Rodriguez, Alexi Sinanaj, Will Tarpeh, Rebecca Wombacher & Bowen Zhou
Sources
● Larsen, T. A.; Gujer, W., 1996. Separate management of anthropogenic nutrient solutions (human urine). Water Science & Technology, 34 (3-4 -4 pt 2), 87–94.
● Lienert, J.; Burki, T.; Escher, B. I., 2007. Reducing micropollutants with source control: substance flow analysis of 212 pharmaceuticals in faeces and urine. Water Science & Technology, 56 (5), 87–96.
● Meinzinger, F. and Oldenburg, M., 2009. Characteristics of source-separated household wastewater flows: a statistical assessment. Water Science & Technology, 59(9), 1785–1791.
● Michigan Water Environment Association, 2017. Michigan’s Water Resource Utility of the Future: Recovery Leadership Summit. Retrieved from https://www.mi-wea.org/docs/4._Summit_Recap_Final_20170329.pdf
● Vinneras, B.; Jonsson, H., 2002. Faecal separation for nutrient management – evaluation of different separation techniques. Urban Water, 4 (4), 321–329