Reinventing the Toilet and Wastewater Treatment System

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Overall view

We get up in the morning.  Brush our teeth, take a shower, and use the toilet.  In the western world, we don’t think about clean water or the waste water process.  In the developing world, designing a system to reduce disease transmitted through improper waste disposal is an engineering and environmental  challenge.

  

I got a chance to talk to California Institute of Technology, mechanical engineering PhD candidate, Asghar Aryanfar about the project his fellow engineers and scientists are working on.  Their prototype will be installed in New Delhi, India later this summer.

 Reactor components

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation funds the project, “Reinventing the Toilet, a Self-Contained, PV-Powered Domestic Toilet and Wastewater Treatment System.”  The project is under the direction of Michael Hoffman, Professor of Environmental Science and Engineering at CalTech.

Simulation sample 1

The team used SolidWorks and SolidWorks Flow Simulation for Academic Research to maximize the amount of waste that can be processed in a single day of sunlight.

 Great project, thank you for sharing!  Marie

Marie Planchard

Marie Planchard

Senior Director, Early Engagement, 3DEXPERIENCE Works at Dassault Systemes
Marie Planchard is an education and engineering advocate. As Senior Director of Education & Early Engagement, SOLIDWORKS, she is responsible for global development of content and social outreach for the 3DEXPERIENCE Works products across all levels of learning including educational institutions, Fab Labs, and entrepreneurship.
Marie Planchard

@marieplanchard1