Appropriate Technology: Water From Thin Air?
 
 
Drinking water not an issue? In 2000 Bechtel was chased out from Cochabamba, Boliva after the by now famous water war. This is part of the reason Bolivia's former president Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada, a.k.a. "Goni," was chased all the way back to Miami. Who ever thought that water and politics didn’t mix? Due to a rising global population, pollution and drought, providing clean drinking water to every person on earth is becoming an ever-increasing challenge in the 21st century. Still don’t believe it? Ask the millions in Africa. One company, Island Sky ™ (http://islandsky.com/aboutus.html), is committed to meeting this challenge head on. Island Sky’s water-making machines use humidity and proper air temperature to create water vapor out of thin air. The machine currently works best in a “room-temperature” environment between 68 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit (20-23.8 Celsius) at 30 percent to 50 percent humidity. The machine draws air through a filter to remove dust, then passes the water vapor beneath an ultra-violet light to kill germs and bacteria. The machine’s interior maintains the Dew Point, allowing for maximum water extraction from the air. Island Sky is working on a machine that will create adequate water for a single-family home, an office building or even a multi-family community. Currently, only the home and office models are available for sale. Island Sky’s goal is to “provide low cost, high-quality drinking water to people in every corner of the world” and also to provide critical drinking water during disaster relief – where water is desperately needed and often completely unavailable. They plan to provide these services using profits they make from selling the products in developed nations and donations they receive through fund-raising and publicity. It is difficult to find information on price, but estimates (http://www.aquatechtrade.com/marketplace/mypage/information.asp?mypageid=1198) are that the machines pay for themselves in the cost of water bought after only one year. The average office worker buys about $1,500 worth of bottled water every year.  http://www.globalpolicy.org/globaliz/special/2004/1205bolivia.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gonzalo_S%C3%A1nchez_de_Lozadahttp://islandsky.com/aboutus.htmlhttp://www.aquatechtrade.com/marketplace/mypage/information.asp?mypageid=1198shapeimage_1_link_0shapeimage_1_link_1shapeimage_1_link_2shapeimage_1_link_3
Thursday, March 1, 2007
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GE Turns to Design Students Wednesday, March 7, 2007 Cell Phones? Tuesday, March 6, 2007 Water From Thin Air? Thursday, March 1, 2007 Clean-Delivery Kits Friday, February 21, 2007 Refrigeration in the Desert Friday, February 16, 2007 The LifeStraw Monday, February 5, 2007 "Design Like you Give a Damn" Tuesday, January 30, 2007 The Hippo Water Roller Wednesday, January 17, 2007 Briquetting Machine Monday, January 8, 2007 Diodes lighting the way and making a difference Wednesday, January 3, 2007 Worth a Peanut Sunday, December 17, 2006 4896FB34-420F-4F43-8535-FFE73C19A9E4.html6E973494-02C6-434B-8E44-D2636F8B7392.html66469452-DC04-4608-AF07-EC6494E65046.html748C4299-1166-4381-841D-F1A43A4A20C9.html5207AD60-9FB3-49FB-A748-A0802DCF3C7B.html093906CD-675B-4E2B-BEC0-3930446ADA4C.html64346CBD-E00B-4578-B099-AB117477C929.htmlD573C110-BDDE-47C2-9641-58B4FD2F8F3D.html810FDD3C-6717-440C-9C30-45B42A553646.htmlE9FA5D87-37B2-481F-8FB2-FA699779DD25.htmlshapeimage_6_link_0shapeimage_6_link_1shapeimage_6_link_2shapeimage_6_link_3shapeimage_6_link_4shapeimage_6_link_5shapeimage_6_link_6shapeimage_6_link_7shapeimage_6_link_8shapeimage_6_link_9shapeimage_6_link_10
Other Appropriate Technologies