Water for SIEM REAP
Donation protected
Rural schools in Siem Reap do not have running water. During the rainy season, they rely on rainwater collection. During the rest of the year, they are often without water. The option of installing wells, however, is not a good solution because Siem Reap has a deficit of about 300 million cubic meters of water per year. To compensate for the province’s ongoing development and water shortages, the Siem Reap Water Supply Authority draws about 27,900 cubic meters of groundwater per day for domestic use. Groundwater levels are further impacted by hotels and other businesses, many of whom have sunk thousands of illegal private wells and pumps across the city to meet their water needs. Pumping from wells dangerously lowers the water table, which is potentially causing the soil on which Angkor Wat stands to sink. This could lead to major structural damage of Angkor Wat and other historic archaeologic sites.
This is why we developed AWE, a method of extracting water vapor from the air by cooling and condensing it. A fan draws in humid air. The air passes over coils that are cooled by a compressor. This causes condensation, which is then fed through a food grade hose to a gravity-fed purification system. The AWE system is solar powered using two 350 watt solar panels. It can extract over a gallon of water per hour, yielding between 15 and 20 gallons of water per day. AWE has no negative environmental impacts and requires little maintenance beyond changing filters ever 6,000 gallons of water collected. Moreover, it is designed to be built with materials found in Cambodia, using nothing more than a saw, screwdriver, and hammer as tools. At a cost of only 2 cents per gallon of clean drinking water, AWE has the potential to transform lives in Cambodia. Come join us on our journey to change the world, one corner at a time,
You might be wondering who "we" are. "We" are 4 students from the RevForce Robotics team, who started this project as part of a robotics competition, but it grew to something so much more. We are a top 20 Finalist in the FLL Global Innovations Award. You can find out more about our team at www.WaterForSiemReap.com.
Valerica Chica, 13 years old
Lexi Kronowitz, 14 years old
Michael Mora, 1 2 years old
Sergio Paez, 12 years old
This is why we developed AWE, a method of extracting water vapor from the air by cooling and condensing it. A fan draws in humid air. The air passes over coils that are cooled by a compressor. This causes condensation, which is then fed through a food grade hose to a gravity-fed purification system. The AWE system is solar powered using two 350 watt solar panels. It can extract over a gallon of water per hour, yielding between 15 and 20 gallons of water per day. AWE has no negative environmental impacts and requires little maintenance beyond changing filters ever 6,000 gallons of water collected. Moreover, it is designed to be built with materials found in Cambodia, using nothing more than a saw, screwdriver, and hammer as tools. At a cost of only 2 cents per gallon of clean drinking water, AWE has the potential to transform lives in Cambodia. Come join us on our journey to change the world, one corner at a time,
You might be wondering who "we" are. "We" are 4 students from the RevForce Robotics team, who started this project as part of a robotics competition, but it grew to something so much more. We are a top 20 Finalist in the FLL Global Innovations Award. You can find out more about our team at www.WaterForSiemReap.com.
Valerica Chica, 13 years old
Lexi Kronowitz, 14 years old
Michael Mora, 1 2 years old
Sergio Paez, 12 years old
Organizer
Dana Choi
Organizer
Doral, FL