Increased BLSS closure using mineralized human waste in plant cultivation on a neutral substrate

The purpose of this work was to study the full-scale potential use of human mineralized waste (feces and urine) as a source of mineral elements for plant cultivation in a biological life support system (BLSS). Plants that are potential candidates for a photosynthesizing link were grown on a neutral solution containing human mineralized waste. Spring wheat Triticum aestivum L., peas Pisum sativum L. Ambrosia cultivar and leaf lettuce Lactuca sativa L., Vitaminny variety, were used. The plants were grown hydroponically on expanded clay aggregates in a vegetation chamber in constant environmental conditions. During plant growth, a determined amount of human mineralized waste was added daily to the nutrient solution. The nutrient solution remained unchanged throughout the vegetation period. Estimated plant requirements for macro-elements were based on a total biological productivity of 0.04 kg day⁻¹ m⁻². As the plant requirements for potassium exceeded the potassium content of human waste, a water extract of wheat straw containing the required amount of potassium was added to the nutrient solution. The Knop’s solution was used in the control experiments.     

One-week habitation of two humans in an airtight facility with two goats and 23 crops – Analysis of carbon,oxygen, and water circulation

Human habitation and animal holding experiments in a closed environment, the Closed Ecology Experiment Facilities (CEEF), were carried out. The CEEF were established for collecting experimental data to estimate carbon transfer in the ecosystem around Rokkasho nuclear fuel reprocessing plant. Circulation of O₂ and CO₂, and supply of food from crops cultivated in the CEEF were conducted for the first time in the habitation experiments. Two humans known as eco-nauts inhabited the CEEF, living and working in the Plant Module (PM) and the Animal and Habitation Module (AHM), for a week three times in 2005. On a fresh weight basis, 82% of their food was supplied from 23 crops including rice and soybean, cultivated and harvested in the PM, in the 2nd and 3rd experiments. For the goats, the animals held in the experiments, all of their feed, consisting of rice straw, soybean plant leaves, and peanut shells and peanut plant leaves, was produced in the PM in the 2nd and 3rd experiments. The O₂ produced in the PM by photosynthesis of the crops was separated by the O₂ separator using molecular sheaves, then accumulated, transferred, and supplied to the AHM atmosphere. The CO₂ produced in the AHM by respiration of the humans and animals was separated by the CO₂ separator using solid amine, then accumulated, transferred, and supplied to the PM atmosphere. The amount of O₂ consumed in the AHM was 46–51% of that produced in the PM, and the amount of CO₂ produced in the AHM was 43–56% of that consumed in the PM. The surplus of O₂ and the shortage of CO₂ was a result of the fact that waste of the goats and the crops and part of the human waste were not processed in these habitation experiments. The estimated amount of carbon ingested by the eco-nauts was 64–92% of that in the harvested edible part of the crops. The estimated amount of carbon ingested by the goats was 36–53% of that in the harvested inedible part of the crops. One week was not enough time for determination of gas exchange especially for humans and animals, because fluctuation of their gas exchange was quite high. The amount of transpired water collected as condensate was 818–938 L d⁻¹, and it was recycled as replenishing water compensating transpiration loss of nutrient solution. The amount of waste nutrient solution discharged from the PM was 1421–1644 L d⁻¹. The waste nutrient solutions from rice and other crops were processed through micro filters (MFs) separately. The MF filtrated solutions were processed with reverse osmosis (RO) membrane filter separately and divided into filtrated water and concentrated waste nutrient solution. The concentrated waste nutrient solution from the crops other than rice was processed through an ultra-micro filter (UF) and reused, although that from rice was discharged in 2005. Concentrations of nutritional ions in the UF filtrated solution were determined, the depleted ions were added back, the UF filtrated solution was diluted with the RO membrane filtrated water, and the nutrient solution for the crops other than rice was regenerated. The nutrient solution for rice was newly made each time, using concentrated solution from an external source and the RO membrane filtrated water. Average amounts of water used in the AHM (L d⁻¹) were determined as follows: drinking by humans (filtrated water), 1.5; cooking, etc. (filtrated water other than for drinking), 14.3; drinking by goats, 3.8; showering (hot water), 13.2; showering (cold water), 0.1; washing of hand and face and brushing teeth, 4.1; washing of dishes, dish clothes and towels, 36.4; and washing of animal holding tools, 0.3. The waste water was processed by a RO purification system and recycled for toilet flushing and animal pens washing. A circulation experiment for water was started in 2006 and a circulation experiment for waste materials is planned for 2007. In 2006, a single duration of the air circulation experiments was 2 weeks, although the human habitants were changed after 1 week.     

Crop productivities and radiation use efficiencies for bioregenerative life support

NASA’s Biomass Production Chamber (BPC) at Kennedy Space Center was decommissioned in 1998, but several crop tests were conducted that have not been reported in the open literature. These include several monoculture studies with wheat, soybean, potato, lettuce, and tomato. For all of these studies, either 10 or 20 m² of plants were grown in an atmospherically closed chamber (113 m³ vol.) using a hydroponic nutrient film technique along with elevated CO₂ (1000 or 1200 μmol mol⁻¹). Canopy light (PAR) levels ranged from 17 to 85 mol m⁻² d⁻¹ depending on the species and photoperiod. Total biomass (DM) productivities reached 39.6 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for wheat, 27.2 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for potato, 19.6 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for tomato, 15.7 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for soybean, and 7.7 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for lettuce. Edible biomass (DM) productivities reached 18.4 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for potato, 11.3 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for wheat, 9.8 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for tomato, 7.1 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for lettuce, and 6.0 g m⁻² d⁻¹ for soybean. The corresponding radiation (light) use efficiencies for total biomass were 0.64 g mol⁻¹ PAR for potato, 0.59 g DM mol⁻¹ for wheat, 0.51 g mol⁻¹ for tomato, 0.46 g mol⁻¹ for lettuce, and 0.43 g mol⁻¹ for soybean. Radiation use efficiencies for edible biomass were 0.44 g mol⁻¹ for potato, 0.42 g mol⁻¹ for lettuce, 0.25 g mol⁻¹ for tomato, 0.17 g DM mol⁻¹ for wheat, and 0.16 g mol⁻¹ for soybean. By initially growing seedlings at a dense spacing and then transplanting them to the final production area could have saved about 12 d in each production cycle, and hence improved edible biomass productivities and radiation use efficiencies by 66% for lettuce (to 11.8 g m⁻² d⁻¹ and 0.70 g mol⁻¹), 16% for tomato (to 11.4 g m⁻² d⁻¹and 0.29 g mol⁻¹), 13% for soybean (to 6.9 g m⁻² d⁻¹ and 0.19 g mol⁻¹), and 13% for potato (to 20.8 g m⁻² d⁻¹ and 0.50 g mol⁻¹). Since wheat was grown at higher densities, transplanting seedlings would not have improved yields. Tests with wheat resulted in a relatively low harvest index of 29%, which may have been caused by ethylene or other organic volatile compounds (VOCs) accumulating in the chamber. Assuming a higher harvest index of 40% could be achieved by scrubbing VOCs, productivity of wheat seed could have been improved nearly 40% to 15.8 g m⁻² d⁻¹ and edible biomass radiation use efficiency to 0.30 g mol⁻¹.