Backyard Bioremediation System 2025-2026

Background
The main objective of the Backyard Bioremediation team is to develop a filtering system that can help repurpose greywater from residential areas. With water being a scarce resource in today’s environment, saving and repurposing water is becoming one of the top priorities for everyone. Therefore, our team plans to develop a compact system that is capable of filtering sink water for irrigation purposes.
 

Unique Focus:
The proprietary element of our project will mainly focus on the compact sizing of our system. Unlike many advanced filtration systems, our project is designed to have small dimensions of 5 feet long, 5 feet tall, and 3 feet wide. Given that our system is very compact, it will provide easy access and compatibility with almost any residential yard. In addition, our compact bioremediation system will filter gray water in an environmentally friendly manner. Our system will have a low carbon footprint due to the use of renewable energy and sustainable filtration materials such as sand, activated carbon, gravel, and woodchips.
 

Goal and Objectives

• Fall Quarter Goal:
  • Design a working prototype with the filter removing contaminants using plant-based media.
• Fall Quarter Objective:
  • Select all the components for a mockup system based on different needs, such as flow control, power, filtration, and initial analysis. (Week 6-7).
  • Obtain all the required materials and build a mockup structure of the filter. (Week 8-9).
  • Have a fully assembled proof-of-concept system that can demonstrate the filtering and removal of contaminants. (Week 9-10).
  • Prepare the system for the showcase presentation with the initial design setup (Week 10).
• Winter Quarter Goal:
  • Have a fully operational bioremediation system capable of delivering safe, tested water for backyard irrigation. The system will be able to run on its own, including pump actuation, automatic filtration, and system storage monitoring. 
• Winter Quarter Objectives:
  • Create an initial prototype with all components present. Test system with varying water input volumes at various levels of contamination. (Weeks 1-4)
  • Based on results from the prototype, begin design changes needed to refine system performance. (Weeks 5-6)
  • Assemble the second prototype and run the same water tests, and compare the performance of the improved system. (Weeks 7-9)
  • Prepare for design review/presentation. (Week 10-Finals)