Page 102 - International Space Station Benefits for Humanity, 3rd edition.

B4H 3rd Edition

contained water that had been contaminated
by livestock.
Todd Harrison, then president of Concern for Kids’
New Technologies board of directors, set out on a mission to revive the
Give Tap Water, ailing community. The solution came in the form of a
and Other Markets, familial connection that put Harrison in touch with the
the “Treatment” NASA engineers who developed technology to provide
Scientific
Economic
A European Space Agency-sponsored clean water aboard the space station.
Valuation
Valuation
International Space Station water recovery Harrison’s sister, Robyn Gatens, was the engineering
investigation has helped the Aquaporin Space manager for the Environmental Control and Life Support
Alliance and its parent company to commercialize System (ECLSS) project at NASA’s Marshall Space
ECONOMIC
SCIENTIFIC
the Aquaporin Inside™ technology for ground- Flight Center. She and her team of engineers developed
VALUATION
VALUATION
based applications. This and other Aquaporin the cutting-edge system that recycles air and water
activities have resulted in seven patents and aboard the space station.
consideration in multiple scientific journals. In 2016, Efficiently recycling wastewater onboard the ISS
Aquaporin reported $1.35 million in revenue as a reduces the need to provide the resource via resupply.
result of commercializing the Aquaporin Inside Tap Without this capability, the space station’s current
Water Reverse Osmosis membrane for household logistics resupply capacity would not be able to support the
purifiers. Their recently developed production standard six-crew-member population, and resupply is
facility will be used to launch several more not even an option for long-duration space travel.
products into the advanced water treatment, Two principal components make up the space station’s
food and beverage, and desalination markets. regenerative ECLSS: The Water Recovery System
These products include a Brackish Water Reverse (WRS) and the Oxygen Generation System (OGS).
Human Earth Observation Innovative Global Economic
Osmosis, Seawater Reverse Osmosis, and
The WRS conducts the water purification and filtration
Health and Disaster Technology Education Development
process in the ECLSS. WSC licensed this technology
Forward Osmosis membranes, which were, as
Response
of Space
of June 2017, in lab and pilot-scale production. to adapt it to an Earth-based water treatment system.
Harrison discovered an interesting relationship between
WSC’s water filtration system and NASA’s system
because of his familiarity with his sister’s work. NASA’s
previous research and application resulted in the
creation of the Microbial Check Valve (MCV), an integral
Advanced NASA Technology Supports component of the purification and filtration process.
Water Purification Efforts Worldwide The MCV is an iodinated resin that provides a simple
Whether in the confines of the ISS or in a tiny village in way to control microbial growth in water without the use
sub-Saharan Africa, drinkable water is vital for human of power. It performs an important secondary nutritional
survival. Unfortunately, many people around the world function for the populace by dispensing iodine into
lack access to clean water. At-risk areas can gain
access to advanced water filtration and purification
systems through technology that was developed for
the space station, thereby making a lifesaving
difference in these communities. At-risk areas can gain access
The first of many ground-based water filtration systems to advanced water filtration and
using NASA technology was installed in northern Iraq purification systems through
in 2006. The system was developed by Water Security
Corporation (WSC) (http://www.watseco.com/) in technology that was developed
Reno, Nevada. A nonprofit organization, Concern for for the space station, thereby
Kids, had learned about a well failure that left the making a lifesaving difference
residents of Kendala, Iraq, without access to drinkable
water. The population of the village quickly dwindled in these communities.
from 1,000 residents to a mere 150. Those who
remained were forced to use a nearby creek that

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