Space Toilet Water Recovery: Vapor-Compression Distillation

A spacecraft toilet is only half a plumbing problem — the other half is a chemical plant. This simulator models the Vapor Compression Distillation drum that turns collected urine into potable water aboard a real space station: a spinning drum uses centrifugal force to hold wastewater against its wall in place of gravity, a heater evaporates the water while non-volatile solids are left behind as concentrating brine, and a cold plate condenses the vapor into distillate. Tune heater power, drum RPM and cold-plate temperature and watch the water-recovery rate, brine concentration and distillate purity evolve from the same mass-and-energy balance the real hardware runs on, including the crystallization limit that forces a brine-bag swap.