FORAM – WATER PURIFICATION VESSEL | BART//BRATKE

BART// BRATKE in collaboration with studioDE conceive visionary raft Foram, an ecological concept to produce fresh water from sea water which can be scaled to local needs. The amphibious pavilion wins the 4th prize in the internationally acclaimed Landart Generator Initiative (LAGI) Competition to design a performative structure in the coastline of Santa Monica, California.

Hence the vessel can be applied globally wherever there is a need for fresh water and also is maneuverable which allows to bring Foram quickly into areas with an urgent need for fresh water. Although conceived for the coastline of Los Angeles, Foram has a strong global relevance. California has been experiencing serious drought and water scarcity over the last years. The state is entering the fourth year of a record-breaking drought creating an extremely parched landscape.

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In this context, Foram is a prototype that aims at meeting the need of sustainable management of the water resource and at the same time creating awareness by creating a usable piece of transformable architecture in front of Santa Monica’s coastline. The nomadic, hydrodynamic vessels become a showcase and interconnected learning platform for water purification processes and raise awareness for free access to drinking water worldwide. The design of the raft is an innovative scientific experiment dedicated to set investigation fields as much innovative too. It is a “clean” vessel, of a new generation, a floating purification station, a tool of ecologic promotion, dedicated to sensitize the populations.

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The whole organism is designed to have carbon-zero emissions, purifying drinking water and collection energy via the principle of the solar pond. The raft consists of two major parts: On one hand the floating raft itself. Its scenography animates the debate on the water future into four thematic areas that provide spaces for urban farming, dedicated learning area, an eatery with self-grown food and a water bar at the gravity center where floating platform and performative roof canopy meet each other. On the other hand, the roof structure consists of 3 elevated tanks, at the top of the canopy, that purify water via direct desalination that gets distributed via a network of transparent tubes and collected at the bottom of the raft. The fresh clean water can either be enjoyed first hand at the fresh water bar, stored into the Santa Monica water network, used on one of the platform’s arms for off shore farming or get vaporized to cool down the surrounding and create an own atmosphere inside the structure.