WATERQUEST 2019: the sequel

Any ideas on the flooding issue?

In January of this year, a competition was launched at Infratech: the Waterquest. Nering Bögel challenged TU students to generate ideas that could limit or prevent flooding of urban areas. Biggest challenge: be creative and, above all, don't let thoughts of technical or financial feasibility get in the way.

The golden egg

After the kick-off at the end of March, there was a meeting at the beginning of July in which the students were able to present their ideas to Richard Janssen (owner of Nering Bögel and initiator of the competition) and Nick van de Giessen (international top expert on water issues). Despite surprising angles and clever, original ideas, "the golden egg" was not yet among them... When judged purely on the assignment formulation, there are a few entries that meet it (partially or completely). "Especially the ideas that prevent rainwater from coming down over urban areas have the best common ground with the initial question," believes Van de Giessen, Waterquest jury member. "Like the example below on Resonance and Convection. It should be added that such measures inevitably involve an intervention in nature. Of course, we have to investigate that properly." Janssen adds: "Ideas which on the one hand (partially) prevent water from falling over urban areas and on the other hand still require buffering or infiltration, only partially meet the initial demand but show a more realistic picture in terms of manufacturability." Some of the submissions:

Resonance and Convection

Preventing rainfall over urban areas through Resonance and/or Convection.

Hydrogen from rainwater

Through electrolysis apprature installed in urban areas, rainwater can be converted into hydrogen. Through the network of pipes (now natural gas, later to be used for hydrogen), it is transported to energy plants that run on hydrogen. There are also storage tanks there for large quantities of hydrogen.

APS

Aquifer Precipitation Storage (APS) collects water from building roofs. This is piped to an aquifer (underground aquifer) for each subarea. Further on, the water is pumped out of the ground at the same flow rate and discharged to open water.

Draining water at top speed

The hyperloop: a not yet operational means of transportation in which capsules of rainwater travel a high speed (up to a maximum of 1,200 mph) through a vacuum tube to a place where it does not cause a nuisance, thus increasing the drainage capacity of sewers.

The sequel

"Step by step, we will work toward an idea that can be further researched, developed and possibly even realized," Janssen said. "The group of submitters has been asked to continue discussions with each other. They are making a plan of action for the follow-up, which naturally includes involving other disciplines.  In order to create as few obstacles as possible, Nering Bögel is providing a research budget of €100,000. With the aim of covering necessary (external) costs to be incurred." In September, the jury will assess whether it believes that the research direction and the plan of approach are sufficiently substantiated and have a form of opportunity in them and can therefore be followed up.

Why this initiative?

Nering Bögel is convinced that companies think and work too much in fixed familiar patterns. A company generally has many obligations which inhibits in "experimenting in dreamland. Unbound free spirits can do this because they are not dependent in their social lives on this experimentation. Van de Giessen deliberately stated not to invest more than 10% of your time and especially to exchange ideas with each other and broaden the group from other perspectives that technology alone. To be continued