Progressive Plumbing
Whilst it may not be the most appealing design challenge to some, Bog Bazelgette noticed the gap in the market for low-g sewage systems. Following in his great great grandfather’s footsteps, Bog has led Progressive Plumbing to corner this niche market with their novel peristaltic design.
Progressive Plumbing has developed peristaltic sewerage systems that are less prone to jamming, do not require high pressure to operate, and operate in zero-g conditions. Silicone spheres with the same outer diameter as the pipe are used to provide a surface for the electro-hydraulic bladders to press against to move the waste stream. Provision must be made for these spheres at intersections or terminuses with processing equipment. The spheres must move through a loop or have separate systems in place for moving them back through the system and must be cleaned after 96 hours in operation for hygiene purposes. The peristaltic effect may operate in both directions along the pipe.
The sewers have a power drain of 1W per kg to be moved per second. The waste maxes out at a speed of 1 ms-1 in the 0.5 m diameter pipes. The probability of a single failure in a system of length x metres is x * 0.0001 and hence multiple failures are distributed Poissonially. Progressive Plumbing charge a flat contract fee of $1,000,000 per installation with a cost of $50 per metre of piping. This includes supervision of installation but does not include shipping of the material to the site. The system will be guaranteed for 5 years after the completion of installation. The pipe weighs 1.5 kg per metre while each sphere weighs 11.3 kg and both are produced in Nebraska.
This webpage refers to a fictional company which is part of the UK Space Design Competition. No information presented here or implied herefrom should be regarded as factual. Any similarities with real events, places, or persons are purely coincidental.