New Generation of Water-From-Air Machines

Turning fresh air into water seemed like nothing short of a miracle back in 2012.

That was when Israeli startup Watergen revealed its first atmospheric water generator to the world.

Watergen cools air, much like an air conditioner, until it condenses and becomes water.

But technology moves on apace. And H2oll another Israeli startup, says it can also produce drinking water from the atmosphere – but more cheaply, more efficiently and more sustainably. And in any climate.

It aims to address the global water crisis, especially in the developing world, where countries want to avoid expensive infrastructure, or costly bottled supplies.

H2oll has added a new element to existing water-from-air technology, by way of a concentrated salt solution.

Instead of cooling the whole air mass, it extracts and cools only the moisture molecules – around two percent of air content, depending on humidity – and turns them into water.

Watergen, subsequently bought by Russian-Israeli entrepreneur and billionaire Michael Mirilashvili, invented the direct condensation method to extract water from entire air mass.

But H2oll uses second generation technology to extract water only from the particles that will actually yield water. That’s how it saves energy.

The method it uses is called absorption or liquid desiccant technology. A desiccant is anything that absorbs moisture from air.

In this case, the company captures the moisture using a solution similar to the water in the Dead Sea, which contains one part salt to two parts water.

“Our technology is a game changer compared to the direct condensation that Watergen uses,” says Yoav Kirsch, CEO at H2oll.

Keep reading at nocamels.com.

H2OLL Founder and CTO Ilan Katz is a Technion alumnus.