We are pleased to invite you to the guest lecture by Prof. Dyllon Randall, as part of the IntCDC Constructive Conversations:
Title: "Integrated Resource Recovery for Bio-Materials and Fertilizer Production"
When: Tuesday 12th of May at 5:00pm
Where: ILEK, Pfaffenwaldring 14, 70569 Stuttgart
Abstract:
This lecture explores a fundamental circular economy paradigm shift that re-imagines human urine not as a "waste" product, but as "liquid gold" for sustainable resource recovery. While conventional sanitation systems treat urine as a pollutant, this research focuses on a holistic biochemical route to capture and transform nutrients at the source. The presentation first details the critical challenge of urine stabilization, focusing on the chemical and biological interventions required to prevent nitrogen loss and odour formation during collection. By leveraging specialized decentralized collection systems, such as custom-designed urinals, the process ensures that urine is captured in a concentrated form suitable for downstream processing.
The lecture further examines the evolution of urine-to-fertilizer processes, detailing how stabilized urine can be converted into high-value agricultural inputs. This involves optimizing parameters to ensure the final fertilizer products are both efficient and scalable. By integrating on-site stabilization with automated recovery systems, we demonstrate a viable path for sustainable sanitation that yields high-performance resources.
The lecture also covers the development of the world’s first bio-brick grown from human urine using microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP). This process leverages ureolytic bacteria to catalyze urea breakdown and precipitate calcium carbonate, effectively "growing" structural materials at room temperature. The lecture further details the evolution of this technology into bio-tiles, which breaking strength and modulus of rupture exceed international ISO standards, and into an automated 3D printing system.
Short Bio:
Dyllon Randall is a Full Professor in Water Quality Engineering at the University of Cape Town. A chemical engineer by training, his research focuses on sustainable sanitation and resource recovery from waste waters. In 2018, he unveiled the world’s first bio-brick grown from human urine, a breakthrough that received global recognition. This work, alongside his research on urine-to-fertilizer processes, earned him the prestigious 2019 Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) Warner Prize. This prize is awarded biennially to individuals who show "exceptional promise" in sustainable chemical process technology or in making chemical engineering more accessible to a wider scientific community. He is the co-founder of PeeCycling, a UCT spin-off company that has been shortlisted for the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering's Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation.
Free
