Bacteria That Could Turn Urine Into Rocket Fuel

Scientists announced on Sunday that they had gained a new level of understanding about a bacterium called anammox which can turn the ammonia in urine into hydrazine, a rocket fuel.

Researchers at Radboud University Nijmegen in the Netherlands announced that they’d been able to isolate the protein complex responsible for hydrazine production. Unfortunately the production of hydrazine is in such small amounts that the immediate benefits aren’t really all that remarkable. So no, you won’t be flying to the moon anytime soon on a stream of your own urine. I know, I had that dream once too.

However scientists are quick to note that someday this breakthrough could provide us with a new form of a biofuel, clean up sewerage sludge without the need for pumps to provide air, and provide methane in return.

(Source: Discovery)

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