Researchers Create the World’s First Bio-Brick from Urine
Emily Pollock posted on November 05, 2018 |
Shown are the various stages of bio-brick creation, from liquid urine to rock-solid brick. (Image courtesy of University of Cape Town.)
The University of Cape Town in South Africa has developed the world’s first bio-brick made using human urine.
The team—civil engineering master’s student Suzanne Lambert and civil engineering honors student Vukheta Mukhari—has been perfecting the process behind turning liquid gold into something that’s a little more marketable. The finalized bricks are created through an organic process called microbial carbonate precipitation, the same process that creates the hard elements of coral.
First, the researchers collect the urea from human urine, and mix it with loose sand. After packing the sand into a mold, they colonize the sand with bacteria that produce the enzyme urease. The urease breaks down urea to produce calcium carbonate, the compound that strengthens eggshells. Over time, the calcium carbonate cements the bricks into the shape of the researchers’ mold.
The team found that the longer the bacteria are allowed to break down urea, the stronger the bricks become. “If a client wanted a brick stronger than a 40 percent limestone brick, you would allow the bacteria to make the solid stronger by ‘growing’ it for longer,” said supervisor Dyllon Randall. “The longer you allow the little bacteria to…