The sleeper has awakened! Wind Trap is real!

Page 2 - Seeking answers? Join the AnandTech community: where nearly half-a-million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.

kage69

Lifer
Jul 17, 2003
31,620
48,251
136
STILL cheaper to pipe/ship water. The people who need this can't afford it and if they could afford if they'd be able to afford desalinated water or water from a more distant source.

https://www.livescience.com/4510-desalination-work.html

It's cheaper to import than it is to desalinate
It's cheaper to desalinate than it is to use this method.

Do the math.


And the issue of infrastructure for said importation? You realize it simply doesn't exist in some areas right? Why would I be doing the math if I just cited the possibility of donations or subsidies of unknown amounts?
 

GagHalfrunt

Lifer
Apr 19, 2001
25,284
1,998
126
And the issue of infrastructure for said importation? You realize it simply doesn't exist in some areas right? Why would I be doing the math if I just cited the possibility of donations or subsidies of unknown amounts?

And the issue of infrastructure for creating water out of thin air? You realize it simply doesn't exist in some areas right? Why would donations or subsidies be directed towards the less effective water from this air method rather than directing said donations and subsidies towards a method proven to get the water there more cheaply?

Seriously, are you really too stupid to understand this? Any method to get water to villages in the middle of Africa is going to be difficult, expensive and require tremendous investment to built the plants to manufacture the water and power the manufacturing process. Do you understand that? I'm beginning to doubt it, but lets press on anyway. If someone was to, out of the goodness of their heart, decide to fund the machines to manufacture water and the power source they need to operate (and that benefactor exists purely in the realm of unicorns and dragons at this point) would said benefactor piss away his/her money on the LEAST cost-effective way of getting the water to these places or would they be able to do the math which is so obviously over your head and understand the benefit of using the most cost effective method of providing water so that more people could be helped with the same investment? Importing water is cheaper than creating it from thin air and the investment that would be spent creating the infrastructure needed to manufacture water could be spent creating the infrastructure needed to import water which would then STILL be cheaper than manufacturing it. Fuck, this feels like trying to explain nuclear physics to a rhesus monkey.

And if someone wanted to REALLY help these people they'd send them trucks so that they can move to where the water is. THAT is the most effective long term solution: don't try to live in a fucking desert.
 

kage69

Lifer
Jul 17, 2003
31,620
48,251
136
And the issue of infrastructure for creating water out of thin air? You realize it simply doesn't exist in some areas right? Why would donations or subsidies be directed towards the less effective water from this air method rather than directing said donations and subsidies towards a method proven to get the water there more cheaply?

Seriously, are you really too stupid to understand this? Any method to get water to villages in the middle of Africa is going to be difficult, expensive and require tremendous investment to built the plants to manufacture the water and power the manufacturing process. Do you understand that? I'm beginning to doubt it, but lets press on anyway. If someone was to, out of the goodness of their heart, decide to fund the machines to manufacture water and the power source they need to operate (and that benefactor exists purely in the realm of unicorns and dragons at this point) would said benefactor piss away his/her money on the LEAST cost-effective way of getting the water to these places or would they be able to do the math which is so obviously over your head and understand the benefit of using the most cost effective method of providing water so that more people could be helped with the same investment? Importing water is cheaper than creating it from thin air and the investment that would be spent creating the infrastructure needed to manufacture water could be spent creating the infrastructure needed to import water which would then STILL be cheaper than manufacturing it. Fuck, this feels like trying to explain nuclear physics to a rhesus monkey.

And if someone wanted to REALLY help these people they'd send them trucks so that they can move to where the water is. THAT is the most effective long term solution: don't try to live in a fucking desert.

I was under the impression this type of mobile unit (as shipping containers are) could just be air dropped into a remote region by a relief org or the like, put on the long haul ship for an island somewhere. Biomass being free seems to be relevant. Places with no roads, too far away or obstructed for pipelines? Not being dependent on deliveries can be a good thing. It's a tool that might work, if not don't use it. Pull the stick out of your ass and quit acting like I said this was some ultimate solution to replace everything else. I disagree that the tech is futile - that's it professor, never brought numbers into it. I'm going by what I read in the OP's article btw, if there's more stuff you want to link up, cool. Or you can fuck off and ignore my posts altogether really, I don't think I care Gag.

Def not a fan of living in the desert, tried it and I am all set. I liked Sam Kinison's take of "let's just move you people out of the desert, instead of perpetually bringing you guys shit/we have deserts in America, we just don't live in them!" *technically not true, obviously, but still.
 
Last edited:

kage69

Lifer
Jul 17, 2003
31,620
48,251
136
Interesting, punching the Skywater 300 into youtube got me:


Apparently been out awhile now? They are claiming %18 savings vs. trucked in water, in the U.A.E. Looks a shit ton smaller and cheaper than a single industrial grade truck, let alone something like a de-sal plant + large scale road or pipeline project.

A dehumidifier of sorts fueled by free biomass sounds like a good idea to me, but the one in video looks like it's electric. I'm curious to see the guts.
 
Last edited:

Moonbeam

Elite Member
Nov 24, 1999
74,869
6,783
126
There is a completely different and potentially better way to do this using advanced materials like Metal Organic Frameworks that adsorb and trap water even at low atmospheric concentrations and can then be induced by solar heat to give up the water for harvesting. Cooling takes place at night via infrared radiation into the clear desert sky. One experimental model is described here:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-03162-7

There are huge potentials for advanced materials applications in every imaginable direction.
 

BonzaiDuck

Lifer
Jun 30, 2004
16,822
2,143
126
If you want a glass of water after a day or so (because that's how long it will take), dig a trench in the ground with a trowel about 3" deep in a 3'x3' square. Then dig a hole about 12" deep and 30" square.

Pee in the trench. Pee as much and as hard as you can. Pee in the trench every time you have to pee.

Put a can in the center of the 12" deep hole. Put a plastic tarp over the entire earthworks; anchor it at the corners; drop a small rock in the center directly above the can.

After a while, you can drink the water from your own pee -- totally distilled.

PS (no vowel, I say!) -- I do this every day. I make sure it's done, because it's so much fun.
 

Moonbeam

Elite Member
Nov 24, 1999
74,869
6,783
126
If you want a glass of water after a day or so (because that's how long it will take), dig a trench in the ground with a trowel about 3" deep in a 3'x3' square. Then dig a hole about 12" deep and 30" square.

Pee in the trench. Pee as much and as hard as you can. Pee in the trench every time you have to pee.

Put a can in the center of the 12" deep hole. Put a plastic tarp over the entire earthworks; anchor it at the corners; drop a small rock in the center directly above the can.

After a while, you can drink the water from your own pee -- totally distilled.

PS (no vowel, I say!) -- I do this every day. I make sure it's done, because it's so much fun.
I prefer to pee in my pots and drink my urine in the form of juice from an abundant harvest of squeezed tomatoes. It's just an extra way you can love yourself.
 

Ichinisan

Lifer
Oct 9, 2002
28,298
1,235
136
Hmm who to believe, one random sensationalist Youtube video maker or X prize that gives away 10s of millions of dollars for viable solutions.

the video maker to me is a charleton.
You fail.

This thread fails.
 

MagnusTheBrewer

IN MEMORIAM
Jun 19, 2004
24,122
1,594
126
Many people here are forgetting the lack of infrastructure in places where the water extraction equipment would be useful. While it may not be the cheapest solution, they can't afford the cost of infrastructure to bring the cost down.
 

Ichinisan

Lifer
Oct 9, 2002
28,298
1,235
136
I often do but I stand by my opinion.
Dr. Phil Mason (thunderf00t) has paid a lot of attention to this matter for a very long time.

Every year or so, someone gets a lot of sensational news for doing the same thing. Again and again and again...

"AMAZING!"
 

sdifox

No Lifer
Sep 30, 2005
100,891
18,091
126
Interesting, punching the Skywater 300 into youtube got me:


Apparently been out awhile now? They are claiming %18 savings vs. trucked in water, in the U.A.E. Looks a shit ton smaller and cheaper than a single industrial grade truck, let alone something like a de-sal plant + large scale road or pipeline project.

A dehumidifier of sorts fueled by free biomass sounds like a good idea to me, but the one in video looks like it's electric. I'm curious to see the guts.

The one in the op started from the skywater 300
 

FelixDeCat

Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
31,151
2,748
126
They need to award the X Prize to someone that can find a way to convert excess population into water. That should solve the worlds water, food, pollution, housing and energy problems, etc, etc, etc.

Although it might cause a decline in Amazon's stock price. :(