New urinal designs prevent 265,000 gallons of urine splashing onto the floor

Summary

Thousands of gallons of ill-aimed pee could be spared from lavatory floors thanks to a new urinal design, scientists say.Around 1 million liters (264,172 gallons) of urine are spilled onto the floor and walls of public restrooms each day in the U.S. thanks to current urinal shapes, creating hygiene issues and unpleasant smells.But now, in a new study published Tuesday (April 8) in the journal PNAS Nexus, scientists have proposed a new urinal design that could significantly reduce this spillage — improving the hygiene of public bathrooms and reducing cleaning costs.Urinals have not changed much since they started becoming popular in 19th-century Europe, as part of growing public health reforms in fast-growing cities. There are now around 56 million public restrooms across the U.S. alone, the scientists said in the study."Urinals are a staple of public spaces yet their designs have remained essentially stagnant for over a century,” the researchers wrote in the study. "The use of urinals often results in significant splatter (splashback) as urine splashes upon impact with the urinal generating droplets which travel back onto the floor and user."This splashback is a breeding ground for bacteria, resulting in bad smells in public restrooms and the potential for the spread of diseases.Related: The Physics of Peeing, and How to Avoid Splash-BackGet the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox."The surfaces of urinals have significantly higher concentrations of bacteria than traditional toilets, with surrounding floors having the highest level," the researchers added.This high level of spillage of urine requires frequent cleaning, which uses a large volume of water, is unpleasant work for custodial staff and is very expensive.Some bathrooms attempt to reduce splashback using urinal screens, mats, or even stickers to tell people where to aim their urine. The use of such stickers at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport was found to reduce splashback by be...