rethinking design - Spatial Design@Massey

ethinking designcold water could be used as a condenser.According to Grimshaw, “The essence of the idea is to couple a series of evaporators andcondensers such that airborne moisture from the evaporators is then collected from thecondensers, which are cooled by deep seawater. This produces large quantities of distilledwater” (Grimshaw)The design will house a public venue for the performing arts, as well as incorporatingremarkable desalination methods._Performing arts centre_Evaporators and condensersFog Quest, is a non-profit and international organization developed to highlight theenvironmentally appropriate and beneficial uses of fog and rain.Dr. Robert Schemenauer is the exclusive director in the project. Along with Sherry Bennett,Schemenauer went out to find water collection solutions for places where conventionalsources of water collection are not available, such as pipelines, rivers and wells.The system works by a process of condensation of the atmospheres water vapour, whichis air condensing on cold surfaces into drops of liquid. This process is what happens toplant leaves and blades of grass.With assistance of 200sqm of netting which was constructed in 2005, the residents ofSerra Malagueta are collecting fog to supply their waterrequirements.The fog collection screens capture the fog, and thentransform it to water, the water then drips into a troughand flows through pipes. Once the water is collected it isthen filtered and put into tanks to supply schools andcommunities.The potential for fog collection technologies to providesustainable solutions to water are extremely productive.With many areas able to produce billions of litres ofaffordable clean water per year, fog capturing is ideal forbio-mimetic solutions to water collection.