The National Academy of Inventors Video Features Duke Discovery

TAMPA, Fla., Jan. 28, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Academy of Inventors (NAI), an organization that supports academic technology and innovation at learning institutes, and Duke University (Duke) have collaborated on a video giving the public a rare behind-the-scenes look at early-stage academic discovery.

Second in NAI's From Campus to Commerce series, the video features an invention by Marc Deshusses, Duke engineering professor and co-founder of 347 Water. Deshusses has developed a compact decentralized community waste treatment system to address the global crisis facing more than two billion people who lack access to septic and water services.

Deshusses' Supercritical Sanitation System (SSS), designed for use in developing nations, sits in a 20-foot shipping container for ease of transport and cost-efficiency. Each SSS unit can service up to a staggering 30,000 people.

The scientific process Deshusses created for the SSS is called Supercritical Water Oxidation (SWO), or as Deshusses refers to it, a "pressure-cooker on steroids." The SWO uses extremely high temperature and pressure to convert fecal matter into carbon dioxide and water in an astounding 4 seconds.

In addition to processing human waste, Deshusses' SWO also will supply the community with clean water for irrigation, laundry, and showers. The resulting solids from the chemical reaction can be used as crop fertilizer. Deshusses' team is also investigating the potential for future unit iterations to run entirely on recovered process energy, without the need for electricity.

"This initiative is so exciting from both scientific and humanitarian perspectives," says Deshusses. "We know we can do it and that is the motivation that keeps pushing us to achieve success."

NAI President Paul R. Sanberg adds, "The potential global impact of this discovery is infinite. It is truly demonstrative of the critical need for continued scholarly innovation and support. There are so many similar stories like this where academic institutions are inventing ingenious solutions for some of the most pressing global issues we face today."

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funds the Supercritical Sanitation System initiative at Duke.
Watch the NAI/Duke From Campus to Commerce video: [https://www.facebook.com/NationalAcademyofInventors/videos/2737622699636490/]

About the National Academy of Inventors
The National Academy of Inventors is a member organization comprising U.S. and international universities, and governmental and non-profit research institutes, with over 4,000 inventor members and Fellows spanning over 250 institutions worldwide. It was founded in 2010 to recognize and encourage inventors with patents issued from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), enhance the visibility of academic innovation, encourage the disclosure of intellectual property, educate and mentor innovative students, and translate the inventions of its members to benefit society. The NAI works collaboratively with the USPTO and publishes the multidisciplinary journal, Technology and Innovation. www.academyofinventors.org.

Learn About Duke University Engineering:  https://www.genengnews.com/

Contact: Jody Santoro
[email protected]
+1-813-974-0782

SOURCE National Academy of Inventors

Related Links

http://www.academyofinventors.org

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