Source
doi:10.3389/fsoil.2026.1643200 — original publication (opens in a new tab; the file is not redistributed)
Mustaffa et al. (2026) — Human urine as a new-gen fertilizer: circular nutrient economy review
International transferable proxy — no NZ value (same convention as LIT_060 digestate N)
Open-access review (Frontiers in Soil Science 6:1643200, DOI 10.3389/fsoil.2026.1643200, published 16 Mar 2026). A PRISMA-2020 systematic review + bibliometric/techno-agronomic synthesis of 123 peer-reviewed articles (2011–2025) — secondary synthesis, not a single field trial. Global data; no NZ-specific figure. Corroborates the NI nutrient-recovery and fertiliser-offset assumptions as a transferable proxy only.
Summary
A systematic review (Tamil Nadu Agricultural University et al., India) synthesising global research on human urine as a source-separated fertiliser within a circular nutrient economy, guided by PRISMA 2020 across 123 peer-reviewed articles published 2011–2025. It critically assesses urine stabilisation and nutrient-recovery technologies (source separation, membrane filtration, electrodialysis, ion exchange, bio-electrochemical systems, biochar adsorption) and their agronomic performance. Relevant to Neobiome as corroborating evidence for two NI assumptions: (1) recoverable N/P/K yields from human excreta, and (2) urine-derived fertiliser offsetting bought synthetic fertiliser at the community scale. Because it is an international review with no NZ value, it is a transferable proxy only.
Key claims
- claim: "Across stabilisation methods and recovery pathways, reported nutrient recovery efficiencies ranged from 50-95% for N, 40-99% for P, and 80-98% for K. Agronomically, urine-derived fertilizers 'can match or exceed mineral fertilizers, with yield improvements of 10-70% compared to unfertilized controls and yields comparable to urea when applied at equivalent N rates.'"
source_location: "Abstract"
- claim: "Framing context (global, wastewater-scale — NOT urine-only): recovering N, P and K from global wastewater 'could potentially substitute a significant portion of global fertilizer demand, providing approximately 14.4% of N, 6.8% of P, and 18.6% of K'; against a global NPK need of 192.9 Tg, wastewater recovery 'could meet about 13.4% of this need.' Establishes the direction and order of magnitude of the fertiliser-offset framing; the urine-specific offset evidence is the urea-equivalence in claim 1."
source_location: "Section 1 Introduction"Neobiome Intelligence relevance
Corroborates two model assumptions in the nutrient-loop / circular-fertiliser calculation feeding D03 (waste/circular) and D02 (food/agriculture):
- Nutrient-recovery efficiency — the 50–95% N / 40–99% P / 80–98% K envelope supports (as an upper-bound literature range) whatever recovery fraction the engine applies to human-excreta nutrients before crediting them to on-site food production.
- “Offsets bought fertiliser” framing — the abstract’s urine ≈ urea at equal N rate, with +10–70% yield over unfertilised controls, is the plant-level evidence that recovered urine-N can substitute for purchased synthetic N in a community’s food system.
⚠ International review, not NZ — global data, secondary synthesis; use as a transferable proxy only, on the same footing as LIT_060. Recovery efficiencies are technology-dependent ranges, not a single design figure; the wastewater-offset percentages (claim 2) are whole-wastewater, not urine-only, and must not be quoted as a urine-specific number.
Notes
Filed PDF (open access, CC BY, Frontiers). PRISMA-2020 systematic review, 123 articles 2011–2025. All quoted figures read directly from the PDF (Abstract + Introduction, pdftotext -layout). data_quality high (peer-reviewed review; not verified — secondary synthesis, no independent corroboration of the aggregate ranges). No new research target opened.
Connections
Links to
Sources (1): LIT_060
Referenced by
EDT domains (2): D02: Smart Food Systems & Agriculture · D03: Water, Waste & Circular Systems