Creating Water From Thin Air

[Gahars]

Let's talk about Water. It covers around 75% of the Earth, but we can only consume a fraction of that; seeing how we kind of, sort of need it to survive, that can be a problem. There are many places around the globe that don't receive enough water to sustain their populations or crop production, which is bad for everyone.

Now let's talk about the Air. There's a lot of it. Literally, it's all around us (and it often feels like we don't even know it). Literally, air's everywhere up in this bitch.

So, what's the point of bringing both water and air up? And why reference that horrendous Insane Clown Posse song? Well, read on and find out.

Wind turbines have long produced renewable energy but a French engineering firm has discovered another eco-purpose for the towering structures.

Eole Water claims to have successfully modified the traditional wind turbine design to create the WMS1000, an appliance that can manufacture drinking water from humid air.

The company aims to start rolling out the giant products for sale later in 2012, initially focusing on remote communities in arid countries where water resources are scarce.

"This technology could enable rural areas to become self-sufficient in terms of water supply," says Thibault Janin, director of marketing at Eole Water

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Source: CNN

According to the article, one turbine could produce up 1000 liters of water a day (depending on the exact humidity, temperature, and wind speeds). If you're interested in reading up on how this would operate, the article provides a bit of a run down.

This definitely has some potential, enabling us to provide some effective aid to the struggling areas that need it most. Sure, the initial production costs are pretty high right now, but that cost will surely begin to shrink and dwindle over time. When that happens, we would have a great, accessible way to provide a steady supply of that precious liquid we depend so much on. Plus, if the Earth ever does become Waterworld, we wouldn't have to worry about drinking our own urine for nourishment (Take that, Kevin Costner!).

...And in response to the latter question, because I damn well felt like it.

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

Man that title is misleading. They aren't making water out of thin air, they're just removing water vapor from the air. I DEMAND A CHANGE.


EDIT: Also, inb4humidairisthinner

 

[Gahars]

Man that title is misleading. They aren't making water out of thin air, they're just removing water vapor from the air. I DEMAND A CHANGE.

"Creating Water From Water Vapor In The Air" just doesn't have the same ring to it.

 

[gamefan5]

LOL yeah I read that article. Seems interesting XD.

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

Man that title is misleading. They aren't making water out of thin air, they're just removing water vapor from the air. I DEMAND A CHANGE.

"Creating Water From Water Vapor In The Air" just doesn't have the same ring to it.

Pfft. Whatevs.

ONTOPICHOWEVER.
This is pretty cool, but sounds expensive. I assume it would take awhile for the profits to surpass the costs.

 

[yusuo]

you've been watching too much cougar town

 

[Gahars]

ONTOPICHOWEVER.
This is pretty cool, but sounds expensive. I assume it would take awhile for the profits to surpass the costs.

Yeah, the article gives a price range of about $660,000 to $790,000 to install one turbine. That's a significant chunk of change, but it's a starting point. Hopefully with more development and investment, it'll begin to lower.

 

[The Catboy]

Now that is quite interesting.

 

[kthnxshwn]

You guys are really taking this water bending thing seriously.

 

[Phoenix Goddess]

Oh, that's good news. Texas is humid and having a water problem as of late.

 

[notmeanymore]

inb4 air becoming too dry in some areas and everyone buying humidifiers for their homes

 

[Bladexdsl]

they've harnessed frozones power!

 

[The Milkman]

inb4 air becoming too dry in some areas and everyone buying humidifiers for their homes

but that defeats the point of it, seeing how humidifiers need, well water. (Or Mountian Dew and Hawaiian Punch. Best 50 bucks I ever spent at Walgreens)

 

[awssk8er]

I would think in a place that would need water, the air would be too dry for this to work.

But hey, I didn't make the technology.

If it works fine, then that's pretty cool.

 

[notmeanymore]

inb4 air becoming too dry in some areas and everyone buying humidifiers for their homes

but that defeats the point of it, seeing how humidifiers need, well water. (Or Mountian Dew and Hawaiian Punch. Best 50 bucks I ever spent at Walgreens)

I doubt a household humidifier would use more water than a windmill of this sort could produce.

I gotta try that Mtn Dew idea though. Hot damn.

 

[ZAFDeltaForce]

I always had doubt that sufficient water could be harvested from water vapour in the air alone

Good to see it's possible afterall

 

[chyyran]

This is great news for people living in water-deprived areas.

 

[RupeeClock]

I would think in a place that would need water, the air would be too dry for this to work.

But hey, I didn't make the technology.

If it works fine, then that's pretty cool.

You're thinking just about arid areas like deserts and such, there are parts of the world where there is plenty of heavy rainfall but no way to really retrieve clean drinking water.
This technology can retrieve the water from the humid atmosphere, but you need to consider the environmental impact it could have.
An environment is adapted to the humidity and the weather it experiences year-round, if a normally humid town is no longer humid thanks to the machine extracting the humidity into drinkable water, it could have an impact.
What sort, I can't exactly imagine, some wildlife might not cope at all, some plants might die. Sure would be more comfortable weather for the city folk though.

This is great news for people living in water-deprived areas.

So long as said water-deprived areas are humid and not arid, which is truly water-deprived.

 

[FireGrey]

We have enough water, global warming is giving us more.

 

[Sterling]

We have enough water, global warming is giving us more.

Well, that's a salty beverage I hear. The stuff you get from these here turbines is cool, clean, high quality H20.