NSF Convergence Accelerator Track K: Living Matter, Artificial Intelligence, and Water Nascency (LAWN) for Regenerative Environments and Equity

University Of California-Berkeley, Berkeley CA

Investigators

Abstract

Almost 3 billion people worldwide are projected to suffer from severe water scarcity by 2025. In the U.S., seven states in the West and Southwest are already under severe water stress. The capacity to reuse water can potentially decrease water pressures across scales from the end-user to regional water systems. Greywater accrues 40-70% of the total wastewater production in residential buildings (e.g., bathroom sinks and bathtubs). This resource remains largely wasted yet is critical to alleviating water scarcity. While several greywater systems have been developed, they can be used for irrigation at best. However, efficient solar photothermal and photocatalytic disinfection have the potential to be implemented for comprehensive reuse in households, including for toilet flushing, laundry, and showering. Additionally, when a solar photocatalytic system supports organic compound removal, it can yield key advantages for decentralized water treatment at the local scale and decrease impacts on aquifers at the regional level. The nexus of water reuse and water quality is recognized as critical for security and resilience but lacks substantial innovation in fundamental science and technology and implementation strategies. Further, some American communities are often disproportionately exposed to inadequate water resources, whether quality or quantity. In regions such as Central CA, the location of this study, climate variability exacerbates water access and quality, augmenting vulnerability when juxtaposed with wildfires and heat extremes. Our research converges architecture, chemistry, engineering, bioengineering, computing, and social sciences to tackle this interdisciplinary challenge. We will collaborate with industry, government, and the United Auburn Indian Community (UAIC) in CA to advance fundamental knowledge on greywater regeneration and the human interface of greywater reuse panel technology in households. The make-up of greywater is “grey” from its complex physical living and inert components to the complex dynamics of reuse implementation and human interface to the multiscale impact on ecosystems and infrastructures. Our project will focus on (i) metrics, (ii) implementation, and (iii) translational capacities to transform our capacity to recycle and reuse greywater in households. We will co-develop physical characterization metrics of greywater reuse incorporating artificial intelligence multiscale models and establish key social metrics of greywater household reuse. Subsequently, we will establish implementation frameworks on greywater reuse that intersect physical and social dimensions. Lastly, we will co-design and develop a proof-of-concept prototype of solar greywater disinfection household panels with the UAIC community and co-develop a report for future greywater reuse standards and building codes. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.