Dehydration is a serious threat to the well-being of air or sea disaster survivors, who may need to spend long periods in the ocean awaiting rescue. The Life Water vest keeps them afloat but also filters seawater to provide pure drinking water.
Shipping accidents or air disasters over the ocean can lead to people spending long periods in the water with a life vest while awaiting rescue. Dehydration is a major cause for concern in such situations. Life Water is a life vest that contains a reverse osmosis (RO) filter that can turn seawater into drinking water and potentially save lives.
When Life Water is thrown into the ocean, the water-detecting sensor on the bottom of the unit activates, and initiates the expansion of the Life Water unit. (If the sensor does not work, the vest can be manually inflated by blowing through a valve.) Life Water is expanded by high pressure, which also draws in seawater that is passed through the RO filter. The RO filter works by using pressure to force the seawater through a membrane, retaining the solute on one side and allowing the pure solvent (the pure water) to pass to the other side.
Life Water is smaller than a typical life jacket and can be more efficiently stored. Fifteen Life Water vests can be stored in a volume of space that accommodates just five typical life vests. |
