Testing of a Plastic Melt Waste Compactor Designed for Human Space Exploration Missions

Event
International Conference On Environmental Systems
Authors Abstract
Content
Significant progress has been made at NASA Ames Research Center in the development of a heat melt compaction device called the Plastic Melt Waste Compactor (PMWC). The PMWC was designed to process wet and dry wastes generated on human space exploration missions. The wastes have a plastic content typically greater than twenty percent. The PMWC removes the water from the waste, reduces the volume, and encapsulates it by melting the plastic constituent of the waste. The PMWC is capable of large volume reductions. The final product is compacted waste disk that is easy to manage and requires minimal crew handling. This paper describes the results of tests conducted using the PMWC with a wet and dry waste composite that was representative of the waste types expected to be encountered on long duration human space exploration missions.
Meta TagsDetails
DOI
https://doi.org/10.4271/2009-01-2363
Pages
12
Citation
Pace, G., Delzeit, L., and Fisher, J., "Testing of a Plastic Melt Waste Compactor Designed for Human Space Exploration Missions," SAE Int. J. Aerosp. 4(1):63-74, 2011, https://doi.org/10.4271/2009-01-2363.
Additional Details
Publisher
Published
Jul 12, 2009
Product Code
2009-01-2363
Content Type
Journal Article
Language
English