Solar Cucumber

Solar cucumber is an innovative desalination plant design with the potential to help water-starved communities in coastal environments and is among the latest designs from concept creator Phil Pauley.

A number of “cucumbers” are strung together in a permanent setting. Powered by the sun, using the concept of reverse osmosis, the water is purified using the natural process of water cycling in nature – using heat and humidity.

In addition to providing clean, potable drinking water, sea salt can also be harvested for use. Pauley also claims that the chain of solar cucumbers, when left in place permanently, will provide a reef-like habitat for sea wildlife. While this is still in a prototype phase, and it is not known exactly what scale these solar cucumbers can be used on, it is yet another example of green innovation. Even if these solar cucumbers cannot be used for large scale water desalinating, they could be used on a local level, providing for the needs of those in coastal cities or areas that have plenty of seawater, but not enough fresh water. These innovative ideas allow us to envision a future where we make efficient use of resources to provide for our needs.

Topics: Desalination

Airdrop: a solution to the problem of growing crops in arid regions?

Engineering, not magic: the 2011 winner of the James Dyson Award extracts water from thin air. Airdrop is a low-cost, self-powered, and easy-to-install solution to the problems of growing crops in arid regions.

Inspired by Australias worst drought in a century, Edward Linacre from Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, turned to nature to find ways of capturing moisture from air. Edward studied the Namib beetle, an ingenious species which lives in one of the driest places on earth. With half an inch of rain per year, the beetle can only survive by consuming the dew it collects on the hydrophilic skin of its back in the early mornings.

Airdrop borrows this concept, working on the principle that even the driest air contains water molecules which can be extracted by lowering the airs temperature to the point of condensation. It pumps air through a network of underground pipes, to cool it to the point at which the water condenses and delivers water directly to the roots of plants.

Edwards research suggests that 11.5 millilitres of water can be harvested from every cubic meter of air in the driest of deserts. Further iterations of his design will increase the yield of Airdrop. A further £10,000 has also be awarded to Edwards University department to support other young engineers keen to follow in his footsteps.

Topics: Water Conservation and Reuse

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- How can regional stakeholders better collaborate to address the issue?

Water conservation tips - How to conserve water at home

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