With water scarcity and accessibility, especially in far-flung areas, a global problem, various technologies have popped up to provide a solution to this problem. Apart from the WaterSeer, another water generator called SunToWater adds to the list of revolutionary devices that can produce clean water from thin air.
Wonders of Condensation
Unlike WaterSeer that aims to alleviate water poverty in areas without access to clean water, SunToWater aims to minimize water and energy use in outdoor housekeeping such as maintaining lawns, gardens and swimming pools,
According to the company's website, the device works in three stages: absorption, extraction and remineralization. During the absorption stage, the cool air from the outside enters the device, which contains a salty material. The salt then absorbs the air up to six times its weight in water, holding between 40 to 100 gallons of water.
During the second stage, extraction, the salty water is then "baked" using solar thermal collectors and hot humid air, which extracts the water from the salt. The produced non-salty water is then condensed and collected in a tank, ready to be used for watering gardens or filling out swimming pools. Apart from outdoor use, the water can also be remineralized to create safe drinking water.
Solution to Water Supply in Off-Grid Housing
Despite getting water from polluted air, SunToWater attests that the quality of water that their device produces is up to WHO's standard for drinking water. This is because the salt acts as a key player in absorbing only H20 and not the contaminants that the air contains.
What's more special about SunToWater is that it can function in off-grid housing as it uses solar energy as well as photovoltaic panels. The physical unit looks like an AC unit and comes with a 10-year warranty upon purchase.
It has an estimated consumption of about 0.51 kWh per gallon, depending on the heat and humidity in the environment when using it. SunToWater is currently available for reservations and is expected to go out to consumers in the next 12 to 18 months.
Read: WaterSeer: Turbine That Can Produce Water From Air is the Answer to Water Scarcity