70 percent of the earth’s surface consists of water, while only 3 percent of that water is drinkable. Despite the fact that most modern world cities contain a river or border on the sea, many are faced with water scarcity. The current systems used to distill seawater, making use of reverse osmosis, are expensive, leave a large footprint and use a lot of energy. In response to the global problem of freshwater shortage, Jason Kim envisions a sustainable infrastructure system in which distills potable water using the Earth’s pre-existing and abundant water resources.
Water Everywhere investigates the ways in which water can be extracted more sustainably in public space and the possibilities for creating public involvement. The result is a water system designed for the sustainable desalination of seawater by means of solar energy. The system will be implemented on an urban scale, providing not only a source of fresh water supply to cities, but also an educational experience in the form of an established public park with sculptures of inflatable stills that will harvest drinking water.
The stills make use of an enlarged solar panel, which is linked to a new plasmonic absorber technology, allowing it to be used as a building block in urban infrastructure. The system could be installed along water and beach fronts in the form of large public sculptures to evaporate the seawater in the catchment area during the warmer season. The rainy seasons can serve as a rain catcher by turning the tops. This concept can be deployed in any large city that borders the water, and can also be used on a larger or smaller scale to serve as a public infrastructure project, such as a water park or drinking station