NASA's New Bag Turns Urine Into Sports Drink

An anonymous reader writes "NASA's Atlantis shuttle is set to launch this Friday, and its crew will be testing an innovative device that can recycle human urine into a sugary sports drink. The bag uses forward osmosis technology and features a semi-permeable membrane capable of isolating water from virtually any liquid. Recycling urine in this way has a significant effect on a ship's payload, and considering that a single pound adds $10,000 of cost, that slight weight difference can translate to serious savings." CT: I'm at Kennedy Space Center now, tweeting as @cmdrtaco. And I think I'll stay away from the sports drink.

Comments

Re:work with sea water?

[Obfuscant]

This technology isn't new. It's being used around the world already. The company's name is Hydration Technology, not SeaPack. SeaPack is the product name for that particular version intended for maritime use.

They provide the same kind of devices for humanitarian purposes. There is at least one version for military use, and I was able to pick up a few of the early versions through a company contact.

Here's the direct link: http://www.htiwater.com/

Re:Just ask Bear Grylls

[Martin Blank]

Drinking urine when no other source of fluid is available is better than simply dehydrating and is better than drinking sea water. However, once dehydration has set in, drinking urine only compounds the issue. The body is already trying to get rid of sodium to maintain the proper balance, and drinking the urine just adds it back into the body. This leads to even more thirst as the body craves water to balance things out again.

This is why Les Stroud built the urine still. The water was relatively clean and safer to drink, though you get diminishing returns if that's all you have. It may provide a holdover until you can find a better source of water.