Rocket science and waste treatment

Engineers at Stanford University are researching new methods for treating wastewater by increasing the production of two greenhouse gases: nitrous oxide (NOx) and methane. Typically, these gases are discouraged from forming. Both are harmful to the earth's atmosphere, with NOx 300 times more potent than carbon dioxide (CO2). However, encouraging the formation of the gases allows for the removal of nitrogen, a harmful susbtance in wastewater, while simultaneously producing methane for fuel production.

This process of treating wastewater is adopted from rocket science. Brian Cantwell, one of the Stanford researchers, is a professor in aeronautics and astronautics who has spent the past five years studying rocket thrusters powered by NOx. This background allows the researchers to approach wastewater treatment as a resource rather than waste material to be disposed of. While the world is facing contamination from waste nitrogen, the introduction of a process that removes nitrogen from waste could help restore the earth's nitrogen cycle and create a sustainable form of energy.