Saltwater Evaporative Greenhouse
In collaboration with partners on the island of Inagua, I lead my Design Studio group in our efforts to solve problems related to extreme climate and food shortages. Inagua is prone to hurricanes and does not have a lot of access to fresh water which makes food production incredibly difficult. Our idea was to create a hurricane resistant greenhouse that is affordable and easy to implement on the island. Salt water is a vast resource for the island and provided an opportunity for water production via desalination. Therefore, we prototyped a combination greenhouse and desalination chamber. This is an ongoing project as we have received the Burt Swersey Inventors Studio Challenge Grant. View the Saltwater Evaporative Greenhouse Grant Proposal here
Prototype Stages
Inverted Pitch Condensation
Inverted Pitch Condensation
Inverted Pitch Condensation
The Inverted Pitch model is a proof of concept prototype. This model works as a method of evaporating water within the enclosure and directing the condensation from the interior of the inverted roof pitch to the center of the greenhouse where it can be further directed for efficient plant watering.
Desalination Unit
Inverted Pitch Condensation
Inverted Pitch Condensation
The purpose of the Desalination Unit prototype is to test the efficiency with regards to the evaporation and condensation of water. Gathering data on the speed of condensation furthers our ability to determine the best process to provide desalinated water for crop growth. The goal is to improve on the efficiency through testing of various materials with the goal of speeding up
condensation.
Desalination Prototype
Inverted Pitch Condensation
Desalination Prototype
The prototype works through passive solar evaporation. Saltwater is stored on the interior of the unit and desalinates the water through evaporation and condensation on the angled glass top. After the condensed droplets are large enough, they drip down the glass, into the angled collection pipe and out of the system to be measured.
Experiment 1
Exterior Dome Prototype 1
Desalination Prototype
This experiment is designed to mimic the environment of Inagua on a small scale. Inagua's climate is tropical and there are constant prevailing winds from the ocean. Using a theater light to mimic the sun, the test successfully desalinated water.
Exterior Dome Prototype 1
Exterior Dome Prototype 1
Exterior Dome Prototype 1
The exterior of the greenhouse is a hurricane resistant, geodesic dome. Our initial dome prototype functions as a “looks like” model. The triangles are specifically formatted for a 2V geodesic dome. The triangles were laser cut from acrylic sheets using a 2D drawing model.
Exterior Dome Prototype 2
Exterior Dome Prototype 1
Exterior Dome Prototype 1
The goal of our second prototype was to experiment with cost effective production of the dome. Additionally, we experimented with a differnet assembly method using industrial tubing and 3D printed joints for a 3V geodesic dome.