Monday, July 26, 2004
Troops Can Hydrate New Rations By Adding Urine
Ananova: US food scientists working for the US military have developed a dried food ration that troops can hydrate by adding dirty water or urine.
Urine can work on troops' new dried food ration
The ration comes in a pouch containing a filter that removes 99.9 per cent of bacteria and most toxic chemicals from the water used to rehydrate it.
The aim of this kind of ration is to reduce the amount of water soldiers need to carry. One day's food supply of three meals, weighs 3.5kg, but that can be reduced to about 0.4 kilograms with the dehydrated pouches.
The pouch - containing chicken and rice initially - relies on osmosis to filter the water or urine, says the New Scientist.
A hungry soldier pours dirty water into one end of a foil sachet containing two inner pouches separated by a membrane. The water seeps through the membrane into the dehydrated food on the other side.
As it dissolves large molecules in the food, it creates a very high concentration solution. The osmotic pressure created then draws more water through the membrane.
Ananova: US food scientists working for the US military have developed a dried food ration that troops can hydrate by adding dirty water or urine.
Urine can work on troops' new dried food ration
The ration comes in a pouch containing a filter that removes 99.9 per cent of bacteria and most toxic chemicals from the water used to rehydrate it.
The aim of this kind of ration is to reduce the amount of water soldiers need to carry. One day's food supply of three meals, weighs 3.5kg, but that can be reduced to about 0.4 kilograms with the dehydrated pouches.
The pouch - containing chicken and rice initially - relies on osmosis to filter the water or urine, says the New Scientist.
A hungry soldier pours dirty water into one end of a foil sachet containing two inner pouches separated by a membrane. The water seeps through the membrane into the dehydrated food on the other side.
As it dissolves large molecules in the food, it creates a very high concentration solution. The osmotic pressure created then draws more water through the membrane.
