Engineering & Global, Innovation
The PlayPump System
Perhaps you noticed that a merry-go-round spins like a motor, except instead of electricity, children provide the torque needed to make it turn. However, unlike a regular motor (which often operate at peak efficiencies of about 20-30%), the merry-go-round is 100% inefficient (in a mechanical sense). Why not harness the power the merry-go-round produces? After all, it’s as close to a free, renewable and waste free energy source as you can get.
Engineers realized this untapped energy source by creating The PlayPump, a simple machine powered by kids at play. The Playpump propels water up from under ground into a water storage system that then provides the children’s community access to clean water. Sustained access to clean drinking water creates a ripple effect that can potentially lead to improvements in other areas of the community, like education, health care and economic development.
* A child dies every 15 seconds from diseases related to unsafe water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene.
* 1.1 billion people worldwide lack access to safe drinking water.
* 40 billion hours each year are spent collecting water in sub-Saharan Africa, equal to over 19 million full-time employees.
* Every $1 invested in water yields an economic return worth $8 in saved time, increased productivity and reduced healthcare costs. (UNDP)
* In many areas of sub-Saharan Africa women and girls often walk an average of five miles to the nearest water source every day. If a woman only had to carry water for one hour a day, she could earn an additional US $100 a year.
Related: via Curious Cat: Water and Electricity for All,
