Designed to address the pervasive drought and long-term water problems of the West Coast, The Pipe is an offshore water purification plant that combines sustainable energy, public works and experiential architecture.

A finalist of the 2016 Land Art Generator Initiative design competition, focused on projects around the Santa Monica Pier, the solar-powered Pipe filters brine and channels drinking water to the adjacent city. Saltwater is returned to the Pacific Ocean. Khalini Engineers, a Canadian company, employed an electromagnetic desalination system for their entry, driven by energy from the sun (10,00 MWh/year). With that power and overall system capacity, the Pipe could produce 1.5 billion gallons of fresh potable water annually.

“The sustainable infrastructure that is required to meet California’s development goals and growing population will have a profound influence on the landscape, ” say Rob Ferry and Elizabeth Monoian, co-founders of the Land Art Generator Initiative. “The Paris Climate Accord from COP 21 has united the world around a goal … which will require a massive investment in clean energy infrastructure.”

“Above, solar panels provide power to pump seawater through an electromagnetic filtration process below the pool deck,” writes the design team, “quietly providing the salt bath with its healing water and the city with clean drinking water. The Pipe represents a change in the future of water.”

“What results are two products: pure drinkable water that is directed into the city’s primary water piping grid, and clear water with twelve percent salinity. The drinking water is piped to shore, while the salt water supplies the thermal baths before it is redirected back to the ocean through a smart release system, mitigating most of the usual problems associated with returning brine water to the sea.” In addition to its primary functions, The Pipe also represents an aesthetically pleasing offshore object that would change viewer’s conceptions of near-coastal rigs, conventionally associated with oil production.

Using air flow and solar energy, this ingenious device creates up to 16 ounces (a half-liter) per hour of drinkable water via condensation as you ride, quenching your thirst just when and where you need it most: while cycling hard in hot and humid climates.

Austrian designer Kristof Retezár has submitted this self-filling water bottle, dubbed Fontus, for award consideration to the James Dyson Foundation. His proposal cites potential benefits both to athletes but also more broadly to regions where obtaining potable water can be difficult (in many cases, these are also places where many travel by bicycle).

The gadget itself attaches to the frames of bicycles and contains a slot where a standard-sized disposable water bottle can be attached, filled and detached when needed. Retezár experimented with various materials, systems and processes to make a working prototype in his own bathroom, testing under various temperatures and humidity conditions.

How does it work? “Basically, condensation occurs when you cool air to its saturation point. Fontus has a small internal cooler that is divided into two halves. A solar panel provides energy to cool the upper half of the condenser, a process that heats the lower half. When air flows past the heated lower half, it makes the top cool even further. Air moving through the chambers is slowed and cooled to condense moisture, which drips down into the bottle.”

The inspiration: “According to UN statistics, More than 2 billion people in more than 40 countries live in regions with water scarcity. In 2030, 47% of the world´s population will be living in areas of high water stress. Water scarcity may be the most underestimated resource issue facing the world today. Every measure to ease this upcoming crisis is a welcome one.”

For now, it is a work in progress – whether this design hits mass-production without kinks or complications remains to be seen, particularly given the difficulty of distilling liquid water from air moisture. That said, the process does have a long history in various forms. “Harvesting water from the air is a method that has been practised for more than 2000 years in certain cultures mostly in Asia and Central America. The Earth’s atmosphere contains around 13.000 km3 of mostly unexploited freshwater. This project is an attempt to discover these resources. My goal was to create a small, compact and self-sufficient device able to absorb humid air, separate water molecules from air molecules and store water in liquid form in a bottle.”

Each sheet from this life-saving tome can provide 30 days of drinkable water – all together, the entire volume is able make a total of 5,000 liters fit for human consumption (enough for four years). Instructions printed on each page tell readers why and how to use them as filters in a variety of languages.

The project, a collaboration between scientists, engineers and typographer Brian Gartside, was created for the non-profit WaterIsLife as both an educational tool and vital resource.

Coated in silver nanoparticles and written on with food-grade inks, the pages are able to actively kill off deadly diseases found in the water supply of developing countries. Straining out particles and reducing bacteria counts by over 99.99%, their filtering capabilities leave safe-to-consume potable liquid on par with American tap water.

Co-engineered by creators from Carnegie Mellon and the University of Virginia, the sheets are made to be torn out easily and inserted into a filter box, which doubles ingeniously as a storage and shipping container for the books as well.

Best of all, the book is cheap to produce and thus practical to manufacture and distribute in bulk to those in need. Including various tips teaching proper sanitation techniques and the dangers of dirty water, its messages of awareness are also translated into numerous languages to make it globally legible.