Canned water made from air and sunlight will soon be available for purchase in the United States, in an effort to promote solar-powered "hydropanels" that provide an off-grid method of producing drinking water. According to NewScientist, this sustainable solution, named Sky Wtr, is a product of Source, a company based in Scottsdale, Arizona. It will go on sale in the US later this year. "Basically, we are distilling the air, so you get pure, distilled water as a result," the company explained.
Source's journey began a decade ago with researchers at Arizona State University, who developed the Hydropanel technology, the outlet reported. These panels resemble solar panels but produce clean water instead of electricity. Powered by sunlight, these panels draw water vapour from the air, which is then absorbed by a hygroscopic material.
The system uses solar power again to release this moisture in a concentrated air stream, enabling passive condensation of water inside the panel, the outlet explained. Each panel can produce up to 3 litres of drinking water a day, even in arid conditions like Arizona, enough to meet an individual's daily needs. The water produced is highly pure and is mineralised and ozonated to ensure it is safe to drink.
Source, launched in 2014 as Zero Mass Water, already has hydropanels installed in 56 countries across the globe. The panels can be installed as ground arrays, or on rooftops, linked into a building's drinking water pipes. With each Hydropanel costing $3,000, their primary customers have been governments and development banks aiming to provide drinking water to remote or water-scarce communities.
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In Florida, Source also operates a "water farm", where it can produce 3,000 litres of water per day using its panel array. It plans to sell this water to the public under the brand Sky Wtr across the US in major retailers from August or September 2024. The water will be sold in recyclable aluminium cans and bottles.
According to the company, the goal of introducing Sky Wtr is not just to compete in the bottled water market but to raise awareness about the Hydropanel technology and promote sustainable water sourcing. The high cost of hydropanels is currently a barrier to widespread adoption, but the company is confident that prices will decrease significantly in the near future, making sustainable, self-produced water economically viable.
