Chennai: These metro stations offer passengers water made from air

CHENNAI: Metro stations in the city are providing potable water to passengers out of thin air, literally. Atmospheric water generators that can convert air into drinking water have been installed in Airport, Alandur and Koyambedu metro stations.
All 41 metro stations in the city have installed reverse osmosis technology to dispense drinking water for passengers on the concourse level.
The air-to-water generator was one of the three facilities that was inaugurated earlier this week at the Airport metro station.
“We installed three such generators each costing Rs6 lakh in three metro stations as part of a CSR project by our onsultant. This is a new technology which we have installed to check their performance. They underwent a series of tests before they were installed on the concourse level of the stations for use of commuters,” a metro rail official said.
These generators draw moisture from the humidity in the air. It then passes through a condenser where the coils turn the moisture into water droplets, which is then stored in a tank.
The water then undergoes a four-step filtration process before it passes on another tank. The water is then ozonated from an ozone generator. From the tank, the water is provided as regular and cold water for the commuters through a water dispenser. CMRL officials said the ozonated water is safe to drink.
Officials said the technology is most useful as there is often a water crisis in the city and metro stations do not have to depend on water supply to purify and provide potable water to commuters.
“This air-to-water generator consumes less space in our concourse level. But what we must see is if it is cost effective for us to install in other stations. As of now, we do not have plans to install in other stations,” an official said.
Earlier this week, feeding booths and escalators were also inaugurated at the airport station for the increasing footfalls.