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Historic Moment: Puerto Rico’s Water Purification Breakthrough Was on Board With NASA’s Stranded Astronauts 

Credit: NASA

The mission was meant to bring two astronauts home after spending months stranded in space. But as the capsule touched down near Tallahassee, another piece of cargo had also made its return — a groundbreaking water purification system designed at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez (RUM). 

Dr. David Suleiman Rosado, director and professor at RUM’s Department of Chemical Engineering, had anticipated his team’s experiment would be tested aboard the International Space Station (ISS). He did not expect it to be on the same return trip as NASA’s Crew-9 astronauts. “I couldn’t believe it,” he told El Nuevo Dia. “They ran the experiments right away. It’s already back on Earth.” 

The Technology Behind the Experiment

Puerto Rico’s water purification system, developed by Suleiman Rosado and his students, is designed to purify and recycle urine. Water accounts for 97 percent of urine, but before astronauts can drink it again, contaminants must be removed. The ISS currently relies on a distillation process that requires significant energy and complex mechanisms, including pumps to move liquid through the system. 

RUM’s approach is different. Their purification system uses nanostructured polymer membranes that allow for a simpler, more energy-efficient separation process. The experiment, launched on March 14 as part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 mission, was completed within 12 hours of arrival at the ISS. Astronauts placed preloaded cartridges into a pump-like system, initiating a process that moves fluid through specialized membranes. “At the end of two hours, once they turn it off and remove the cartridge, the separation has already taken place,” Suleiman Rosado explained. 

Beyond purifying water, the system could have broader applications, including providing fertilizer for space agriculture and producing oxygen. The professor emphasized that the system’s design could eventually support sustainability efforts on Earth, particularly in communities with limited access to clean water. 

Puerto Rico’s Water Purification Technology Had a Long Road to Space

The journey to the ISS began five years ago when NASA issued a call for proposals to improve water purification in space. The RUM team began researching polymer membranes and their potential for effective separation. In early 2025, support from the Puerto Rico Science, Technology & Research Trust allowed them to refine the system and secure its place in the Crew-10 mission. 

Rhodium Scientific coordinated the experiment’s logistics and risk analysis. Once the returned cartridges arrive at the Kennedy Space Center, they will undergo weight analysis before being sent back to Mayagüez for chemical and membrane testing. 

The research could impact fields far beyond space travel. Membrane-based separation is already used in hemodialysis, and further refinement of this technology could benefit peritoneal dialysis and other medical applications. The results could also influence gas separation techniques and advance sustainable water filtration methods for regions facing water scarcity. 

For the RUM team, the experiment’s return to Earth marks the beginning of another phase— analyzing its performance in microgravity. Understanding these mechanisms could help shape the future of water purification, both in space and on the ground. 

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