Innovation

Drinking water production

A matter of
the heart project

Sustainable drinking water production
from air humidity

Since the UN General Assembly’s resolution from 28 July 2010, clean drinking water and basic sanitation have been recognized as human rights. The new development of our system sustainably counteracts water shortage using existing resources such as air humidity and solar energy.

Approximately one billion people around the world are living without access to clean drinking water and basic sanitation. This is our motivation to further advance the development of our compact and energy self-sufficient system.

When designing our system, we were able to successfully use our competencies in control technology, hydraulics, manufacturing technology and construction. In cooperation with the Technical University of Kaiserslautern and the Fraunhofer Institute, the system has achieved the status of a laboratory model.

Our objective

To further advance the existing laboratory model towards a compact system with the ability to extract drinking water from air humidity on competitive terms.

The innovation

The system is self-sufficient, mobile and simple in technical terms. This allows its use in impassable areas and regions far from the coast.
For the first time, a combination of photovoltaics and solar thermal technology is used. In 2014 we received the patent for dual-stage compression, the process used in this system.

The preconditions

Optimal conditions for operating the system prevail at high humidity levels (min. 65%) and high temperatures (approx. 30°C).

The benefits

It is our objective and desire that, in the future, the system will provide new opportunities for people who still do not have access to clean drinking water. Women and children will be relieved as they will no longer have to walk long distances to cover their daily requirements of drinking water. This will create capacities, in particular for the benefit of children, who will have the chance to go to school, enjoy education or simply be a child and play.