Google's parent company publishes all the data of the project of a machine that collects water from the air, very cheap

"If we can speed up the supply of clean water in any way, we think that's a worthwhile goal."

Last year, on the roof of the parking lot in the Google headquarters campus, engineers working at the X-Alphabet project installed a new system, ready to test it to prove the effectiveness of a long research effort. . They call it 'a machine that harvests water from the atmosphere' ; The machine sucks in air from the surrounding space, uses heat from the Sun and electric fans to create condensation, producing drinking water at a rate of drops per minute.

In the study, published in the journal Nature, the team performed the math on how much water could be harvested, to see if the system could satisfy the thirst of communities living in arid lands. Based on WHO/UNICEF data and comparing the performance of water harvesters with different climate conditions, the team came to a heartwarming conclusion: About 1 billion people without drinking water live in areas where water is scarce. climate in which the machine will operate stably.

These machines are cheap, simple in design.

Large water purification projects, such as desalination lines, will take years to plan and perfect, small-scale machines will help disadvantaged communities survive until drinking water is abundant. . ' With a device powered by solar energy, we can overcome a series of obstacles that solve the problem, ' said Jackson Lord, lead author of the study.

At the same time, the X-Alphabet team is working on a series of projects that address many pressing problems, including new sources of renewable energy or more efficient ways of farming. They tried many times to find a way to make clean water, but only succeeded in ignoring many other difficulties and focusing on producing potable water. This potential project kicked off in 2017.

' One tenth of 1% of the world's clean water goes into our mouths,' said Astro Teller, project X director. 'The remaining 99% of clean water is used for bathing, washing dishes, farming and the like. All of that doesn't require water to be clean… Once we change our perspective, we will be able to apply seemingly impossible solutions '.

These machines are cheap, simple design will not be able to produce enough water to satisfy all living needs, but in many places, it will be the most important source of drinking water. The new equipment can operate independently without the need for 24/7 power, thereby eliminating other extra charges. It uses a solar cell to operate the fan, and the heat to condense the water comes directly from the sun.

The design of the machine is also simple : a fan draws in air from the outside, a desiccant to take moisture in the air. The remaining propeller will regulate the air flow in the machine, so that when the hot air from outside meets the cold air inside, water particles will form. For every hour of operation in a 1 square meter space, the test machine produces 150 milliliters of water; Under ideal conditions, it can produce 5 liters of water per day.

Despite the simple design, the machine's performance has not yet met Alphabet's expectations. Google's parent company wants to produce water at a cost of 1 cent per liter (about 230 VND / liter), while the team finds that 10 cents / liter will be more feasible in the near future.

But because the cost is affordable enough, Alphabet publishes all information to the project, including data on tested models, and documents related to the machine's hardware and software. Anyone can download this document via Github or Figshare.

' We don't always do that, but in this particular case, we feel that the project is on the right track and has enough potential to be worth sharing with the world, ' Mr. Teller said.

' If we can speed up the supply of clean water in any way, we think that's a worthwhile goal ,' concluded researcher Lord.