Project Title:

Space Laundry Cleansing Agent and Filter Development

12.05-5201
Space Laundry Cleansing Agent and Filter
	Development
Umpqua Research Company
PO Box 791
Myrtle Creek, OR 97457
Gerald V. Colombo  (503-863-5201)
JSC -- NAS9-17953

Abstract:

	 NASA's Space Station laundry facility requires a suitable cleansing agent and a
filter for treating laundry water before it is fed to a water reclamation system.
The laundry cleansing agent must be compatible with the cleansing agents developed
for the shower when the two waste streams are combined in the water reclamation system.
The filter must eliminate the fouling observed in waste treatment systems involving
shower and laundry water containing hair, lint, and epithelia. A disposable filter
has been developed for the shower which efficiently removes all particles larger
than 100 mesh and has been shown to dramatically increase the life of subsequent
finer filters. A similar filter is needed for the treatment of laundry water immediately
as it is generated to prevent fouling of pumps and separators and to provide compatibility
with the reclamation subsystems.
	During Phase I, a laundry filter concept was evaluated. In this concept, a roll
of filter media unwinds from a spool, advances across a filter support, and is then
rewound onto a second spool. Candidate filter materials were tested with real laundry
water, and designs were projected for the Space Station application. In addition,
five cleansing formulations were developed that meet requirements of the Space Station
and were recommended for further evaluation.

Potential Commercial Application:

Potential Commercial Application: The cleansing agent may prove to be superior to
present available formulations. The automatic coarse filter should have a wide range
of industrial applications.