How we built industrial atmospheric water generation

The inspiration, mechanics and vision behind the A1R3000 machine — through the lens of the engineer who designed it.

By: Arun Steephan, A1RWATER Systems Engineer

When we envision our biggest collective challenges, the reality of water scarcity demands innovation at scale. Designing the A1R3000, A1RWATER’s industrial machine, marked a pivotal breakthrough in atmospheric water technology. This wasn’t just an assignment for our team, it was a direct response to an urgent global need: to create an effective solution for large-scale purposes.

Developing the A1R3000 was an opportunity to fundamentally change the market landscape and create a new source of water from humidity in the air. The A1R3000 can produce 3,000 litres of fresh water per day directly from the atmosphere. As we built it, our team envisioned giving communities and organisations their own decentralised source of clean water, creating a standalone solution.

Before we dive into the design process, let’s begin with a quick overview of conventional water sources if you’re new to air-to-water technology…

Traditional water sources

We typically have three sources of water: rainwater, groundwater and desalination. Groundwater is limited and depends on the geographical advantages of a location. With energy-intensive desalination, brine (the byproduct of the process) is often sent back to the sea, creating more salinity in the water and damaging marine life and the ecosystem of the planet. These methods also have high carbon footprints, requiring large amounts of energy, the construction of plants and piping networks and water transportation. Atmospheric water provides another option. By harnessing the atmosphere’s humidity with air-to-water technology, we can tap into a vast, renewable source of water.

Technical breakthroughs + cross-industry inspiration

To create atmospheric water at scale, our team focused on reliability and versatility. The main challenges we solved for were the power, space and capacity required of the machine. The A1R3000 needs to work in a range of humidities and temperatures, and allow for real-time optimisation of airflow to regulate energy usage and maximise water production. 

Our team looked at A1RWATER’s existing machines (which generate 30, 100 and 1,000 litres of clean, drinking water per day) as well as innovation in other industries to inform new designs. For example, for energy efficiency, we pulled ideas from refrigeration and air conditioning systems. We also looked at the future of energy infrastructure to bring our carbon footprint to a minimum, allowing us to power these machines with renewable energy. 

The result is a dynamic system with sensors that adjust the inlet airflow rate, using variable speed fans to ensure optimal water generation. We’ve carefully designed the machine to withstand extreme weather conditions, with an operating temperature range of 15ºC to 48ºC and an operating humidity range of 25% to 100% relative humidity (RH) of ambient conditions. We have also equipped it with a defrost cycle for cold weather to make sure the system is able to operate effectively in these circumstances as well.

When updating our human-machine interface — a touch screen displaying controls and data — we took inspiration from the consumer electronics industry: the simplicity of the design and intuitive experience. Our system allows customers to monitor important inputs, including ambient temperature and humidity, parameters such as temperature and pressure across the systems, UV status and more. Giving our customers visibility into real-time status updates and key metrics (such as energy consumed and water produced) empowers them with knowledge and peace of mind, which are critical when introducing new technology to the market. 

The A1R3000 doesn’t require any infrastructure, only a level floor and adequate power supply, whether solar, wind, electricity or hydrogen fuel cell.

Applications + impact

The A1R3000 doesn’t require any infrastructure, only a level floor and adequate power supply, whether solar, wind, electricity or hydrogen fuel cell. The machine’s modular design also allows us to group multiple units together to serve larger populations and fulfill high-volume needs such as farming, industrial water production, sustainable cities or humanitarian efforts.

When paired with renewable energy sources, the A1R3000’s environmental impact is significantly reduced, offering a sustainable alternative to traditional water supply methods, and eliminating millions of single-use plastic bottles and tonnes of CO2 emissions over time.

The A1R3000 marks an important step forward in the capabilities of atmospheric water technology, taking the core technology we’ve perfected and proven over more than six years to new heights.

With A1RWATER, you can enjoy endless possibilities with flexible, scalable innovative solutions. Read more about our custom bottling facilities and water farms, or reach out to our team to discuss your large-scale water needs.

Pictured (left to right): Arun Steephan, Systems Engineer; Dave Cupit, COO; Bhuvanish KK, Design Engineer