Gaurav Goenka of start-up company Kindle Ventures is bringing Dutch technology that can turn air into water, a commercially viable solution that could end the country’s water woes.
This technology, which uses the concept of condensation, is claimed to make up to 20,000 litres of water a day out of thin air. It can be used in any terrain provided the minimum temperature of the area is more than 15 degrees centigrade.
Chief Innovation Officer Gaurav Goenka has signed an MOU with Canadian owned Dutch company Rainmaker World Wide Inc, which holds the patent for this innovation. The core machine is expected to arrive in India soon.
The air to water unit uses a turbine that forces air through a heat exchanger where the air is cooled and condensation takes place. Lowering the temperature of air requires minimal energy. When the temperature falls below its dew point, water droplets will form which are then collected in the water storage compartment. The actual amount of the water that can be produced depends on the average wind speed, the ambient temperature and the relative humidity. This “highly efficient” conversion process is applied via a patented “direct-drive” turbine which uses compressors that generate heat.
This heat is then used to cool down large amounts of incoming air, which is displaced by using vents. According to Goenka an agreement has been entered into to test and modify this technology in harsh Indian conditions. He intends to start a manufacturing plant in India in a joint venture with Rainmaker by the end of 2018.
The technology has been developed keeping in mind lack of power sources. Hence, it can run with solar and wind energy. The company is planning to mount the technology and take it to states like Maharashtra, Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat for demos to state governments.
“Rainmaker has developed this unique and commercially expandable concept and proved how it can be successfully used in countries like India and Africa. The technology Air to Water has already been installed in Kuwait, Netherlands and the Caribbean. I am bringing it to India,” Goenka added.
This cost-effective solution, that comes between the range of `20 lakhs to `3 crores, has the potential to change the world, especially in dry areas where there is a lack of rain.