Muscle-powered mechanism desalinates up to 8 liters of seawater per hour

The QuenchSea 3.0 is presently on Kickstarter. QuenchSea –

By Ben Coxworth
2024 Nov 19
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It’s ironic that even when surrounded by water, sailors who are lost at sea can still die of thirst. The QuenchSea 3.0 portable desalinator is designed to keep that from happening, and it requires no power source other than its user’s arm muscles.

Currently the subject of a Kickstarter campaign, the QuenchSea 3.0 is made by British company Hydro Wind Energy. The firm debuted the original human-powered QuenchSea device back in 2020, followed by the smaller deep-sea-pressure-powered QuenchSea Reel in 2023.

On the original model, users arm-pumped a lever that forced seawater through a triple filtration system and a reverse osmosis membrane. The seawater was drawn in through one silicone tube that ran into the ocean, while the purified water was dispensed out of another tube that led to a bottle or other container.

This setup was said to remove salt, viruses, bacteria, microplastic particles and other contaminants from seawater at a claimed rate of over 2 liters (0.5 US gal) of water per hour on average, or up to 3 liters under ideal conditions. The resulting drinking water was claimed to meet World Health Organization (WHO) standards.

On the QuenchSea 3.0, seawater is drawn in through one of the tubes at the left, while purified water leaves through the tube at the right – the other left-hand tube expels brine

The 3.0 utilizes the same basic concept, but adds a pressure boosting mechanism and an energy recovery system. As a result, it’s said to be easier to pump than the original and faster at desalination/filtration, reportedly putting out an impressive 6 to 8 liters (1.6 to 2 gal) of drinking water per hour.

QuenchSea promises that the purified water will contain less than 1,000 milligrams of total dissolved solids (TDS) per liter, a level that meets WHO standards. In fact, the device should typically bring seawater down to the neighborhood of 300 to 500 TDS, with the activated carbon in its filtration system removing off-putting tastes and odors.

*This diagram shows how the QuenchSea 3.0 is designed to be used. QuenchSea*

It should be noted that both the reverse osmosis membrane and the filter cartridge will periodically need to be replaced. Depending on factors such as seawater salinity and temperature, one membrane should be good for about 300 liters (79 gal) of drinking water.

Assuming the QuenchSea 3.0 reaches production, a pledge of US$250 will get you one. Its planned retail price is $500. Membrane refills will go for $30 a pair, while filter cartridges will sell for $20 a pair.

The following video provides more information on how the device works.

https://newatlas.com/outdoors/quenchsea-3-portable-desalinator/
QuenchSea 3.0 Turn seawater into fresh water

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Source: Kickstarter View gallery – 3 images
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Tags

Outdoors Kickstarter Desalination Water Osmosis
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Ben Coxworth

Based out of Edmonton, Canada, Ben Coxworth has been writing for New Atlas since 2009 and is presently Managing Editor for North America. An experienced freelance writer, he previously obtained an English BA from the University of Saskatchewan, then spent over 20 years working in various markets as a television reporter, producer and news videographer. Ben is particularly interested in scientific innovation, human-powered transportation, and the marine environment.
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10 Comments

warmer – 2024 Nov 19 – 09:10 PM

There are so many flaws in the execution of the design. Why aren’t people making this work as a foot pump. So much easier for prolonged use. If you don’t mount this on something, the arm holding it down and you back will hate you. Fix those two things and this is amazing

Rick O – 2024 Nov 20 – 06:21 AM

Warmer, a foot pump version would be good for land based use. But in a life raft, that might not work as well to have in your emergency kit. Both options would be nice depending on the intended use.

grey – 2024 Nov 20 – 06:25 AM

My issue with devices like this is that because it’s Kickstarter it’s not a huge company their group might not be around forever so if you need some kind of non-standardized reverse osmosis membrane or filter or whatever in the future and they’re not around anymore then how are you going to use this device

It’s kind of similar to the Lytro cameras where I bought one recently even though they were discontinued like 10 years ago and I found one person who had a camera that was not damaged and was fully working but then I had to find someone with a battery because they had a proprietary battery with a proprietary charger and I had to go to basically three different people to get all of those things and I just lucked out and then the software isn’t updated anymore so I had to track down like a bootle copy of it that someone had in their Google Drive
Now imagine that but it’s your water

sidmehta – 2024 Nov 20 – 07:45 AM

Loved it! Should be mandatory for all lifeboats. Even if this company goes out of business, two more will spring up if it’s mandatory. Solves the age-old problem of people at sea dying of dehydration. Sure, it would be better foot operated and clamped down in a lifeboat.

veryken – 2024 Nov 20 – 08:28 AM

Another hand-cranked desalination device. Cheaper than Survivor 35 from Katadyn. Cool.

CraigAllenCorson – 2024 Nov 20 – 09:13 AM

Is there a powered version for use on shore, or for larger vessels that need a source of fresh water?? Seems like it should be trivially easy to create one.

Global – 2024 Nov 20 – 09:28 AM

Pack it down to the size that fits in a life jacket, and works off arm/body or wave motion…

DrDlDoe – 2024 Nov 20 – 12:43 PM

Will this work on spring water under land that’s been sprayed by pesticides and herbicides (poisoning on a vinyard)?

Hon – 2024 Nov 20 – 01:41 PM

I actually don’t understand the diagram explaining how to pump it. Is the designer familiar with human anatomy and which direction limbs move? If you spun it around 180 degrees you would at least get a handle movement that makes sense, but you’d also need to support the device around the filter cartridge. Always the reddest of red flags when something so simple isn’t even prototyped in real life…

Karmudjun – 2024 Nov 20 – 07:30 PM

Very nice concept, and well written Ben. Hopefully if I am ever stranded on an ocean or sea there will be at least ONE of these devices available. I like the micro reverse osmosis stage of the system – but I’m curious how many of the three stage filtration devices you have to go through to achieve the 6-8 liters a day production in “real life”. After all, the RO can last for 300 liters before “needing” replacement, even 150 liters would be fine for me if stranded somewhere with people searching for me! Now if no one is looking, and I’m stranded on an island with no other water source – I’d still be in trouble even with this device handy.
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