Design and construction of a small-scale human feces incineration toilet.

Abstract

Recent estimates suggest that approximately 40% of the world’s population does not have access to an adequate sanitation system. This lack of access is one of the major causes of child mortality, mainly due to diarrhoea. The development of technology in the emergency sanitation sector has not been emphasized sufficiently. In an attempt to increase access to emergency sanitation in Buwali Internally Displaced Persons Camp there was a need to develop sustainable toilets that can be used in areas without an electrical grid or sanitary plumbing. These criteria allow the toilet to be placed in rural areas without access to an electrical grid and in environments where water is scarce. This report describes the design and construction of a solid human waste partial-incinerating burner for use in emergencies that was developed in response to the inadequate sanitation in Buwali Internally Displaced Persons Camp. The incineration process was chosen because the high operating temperature ensures the elimination of pathogens. The device was developed by understanding the fundamentals of fecal material and the physical and chemical fuel properties. The critical variables estimated include the mass and volume of the fecal matter, source energy requirements, the stochiometric air requirement and waste generation. The exhaust gas from the combustion is used for drying of the biomass or fecal materials fed in the next batch. The char is used as a binder to produce charcoal briquette from biomass waste. Briquets production and exhaust gas usage provides a sustainable energy source for the toilet. The result is a prototype powered by bioenergy that can sanitize fecal waste.