Nitrogen and Phosphorus Recovery from Human Urine by Struvite Precipitation and Air Stripping in Vietnam

A “No Mix” sanitation system was installed in a dormitory at the University of CanTho in South Vietnam, with the objective of recycling nutrients from source separated wastewater streams. This paper presents the “Yellow Water” treatment plant and its efficiency in recovering phosphorus and nitrogen from human urine. The pilot plant achieved phosphorus removal efficiencies of 98% with both diluted and undiluted urine. Phosphorus was recovered in the form of struvite, a solid mineral fertilizer with heavy metal concentrations being below the German Fertilizer Regulation's threshold limits. About 110 g of struvite could be generated after one treatment cycle, during which 50 L of urine were processed. Nitrogen removal by air stripping showed best results when circulating the urine for 3 h through the stripping column at a high flow rate (80 L/h). With these settings, more than 90% of the nitrogen could be removed from the urine, and virtually 100% of this nitrogen could be recovered in the form of liquid ammonium sulfate. In the future, treatment costs could be further reduced by making use of the solar energy that is available during daytime in South Vietnam.     

Recovery of Plant Nutrients from Dilute Solutions of Human Urine and Preliminary Investigations on Pot Trials

Within the context of Ecological Sanitation (ECOSAN), human urine has been the subject of research and practice as a potential fertilizer in the recent years. Although quite a lot had been done with original undiluted urine with promising outcomes, not much appears in the literature which concentrates on dilute solutions of urine. This is important because unless waterless toilets are employed, urine will be diluted with flush water in actual use. In this work, dilute solutions of urine are investigated with emphasis on the recovery of plant nutrients. A natural zeolite namely clinoptilolite was loaded with nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium as an indirect route of processing urine. The results have revealed that hydrolysis is completed in shorter times in dilute samples. Clinoptilolite could successfully remove plant nutrients from all dilute solutions. Nitrogen could be recovered up to 86% with higher efficiencies at higher concentrations in general. Recovery of orthophosphates increases with increasing concentration to reach 96%, however, potassium could not be recovered. The preliminary experiments with grass have revealed that nutrient loaded clinoptilolite was as effective as chemical fertilizers while direct application of original and diluted solutions of urine had shown inferior yields.     

Nutrient Recovery from Human Urine Using Pretreated Zeolite and Struvite Precipitation in Combination with Freezing‐Thawing and Plant Availability Tests on Common Wheat

The nutrient rich fractions in wastewater originating from human urine and can be recovered as solids for more efficient recycling, facilitated handling and storage for reuse in agriculture. Freezing and thawing can be used to concentrate the urine nutrients. Phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) can be precipitated as struvite [(Mg,Ca)(K,NH₄)(PO₄)·6H₂O] by adding MgO and additional nitrogen can be recovered by using zeolites. The zeolite in this study was pretreated in two ways: (i) washed and (ii) washed and thermally treated. The P recovery was high (> 97%) and the N recovery was ca. 50 to 60%. There was no significant difference in the nitrogen recovery among the different pretreated zeolites or between the pretreated and the untreated zeolite. Freezing had a positive effect on the nutrient concentration. The acute toxicity of the supernatants was tested on Daphnia magna to evaluate the possibilities of discharging the remaining supernatants to a recipient. The supernatants from the frozen treatments and from the unfrozen and washed zeolites were much less toxic than those of the original urine. The minerals acted as slow‐release fertilizers in climate chamber tests on spring wheat.     

The Effects of Hydrophilic Polymer and Soil Salinity on Corn Growth in Sandy and Loamy Soils

The interaction effects of different applied ratios of a hydrophilic polymer (Superab A200) (0, 0.2, 0.6% w/w) under various soil salinity levels (initial salinity, 4 and 8 ms/cm) were evaluated on available water content (AWC), biomass, and water use efficiency for corn grown in loamy sand and sandy clay loam soils. The results showed that the highest AWC was measured at the lowest soil salinity. The application of 0.6% w/w of the polymer at the lowest salinity level increased the AWC by 2.2 and 1.2 times greater than those of control in the loamy sand and sandy clay loam soils, respectively. The analysis of variance of data showed that the effect of salinity was significant on biomass and water use efficiency of corn in the loamy sand and sandy clay loam soils. The highest amounts of these traits were measured in soils with the lowest salinity level. Application of polymer at the rate of 0.6% in the loamy sand soil and at the rate of 0.2% in the sandy clay loam soil resulted in the highest aerial and root biomass and water use efficiency for corn. At these polymer rates the amounts of water use efficiency for corn were 2.6 and 1.7 times greater than those of control in the loamy sand and sandy clay loam soils, respectively. Thus, the use of hydrophilic polymer in soils especially in the sandy soils increases soil water holding capacity, yield, and water use efficiency of plant. On the other hand, decreases the negative effect of soil salinity on plant and helps for irrigation projects to succeed in arid and semi‐arid areas.