glyph 653: Gayle Pergamit, Covalent Agua Via . nanotechnology eric drexler . technology building at atomic scale atomically precise ... water . separation science . lowest possible energy cost . desalination . purification ... molecular toolbox
The core technology that Agua Via uses comes from Covalent. The net effect of this technology is taking the Industrial Revolution to the nanoscale. Our current world is built on a foundation of low cost, standardized mix&match parts - one of the foundations of the Industrial Revolution - which are then the basis for creating individualized products. We have taken that whole package to the atomic scale. We are doing design and build control at the angstrom scale. The basis of the technology is a library of mix&match atomically-precise parts: LEGO™ blocks at the atomic scale that 'snap' together to efficiently create customized macroscale products. Many kinds of other "snap on" devices are possible - like sensors.
This is nanotechnology that meets Eric Drexler's definition: atomic precision at the nanoscale. Not crude nanotubes or nanoparticles. But rather than being built the way that Eric proposed - constructing a product one atom at a time - here products are built by selecting standardized atomically-precise parts from a Molecular Toolbox and then rapidly and cost effectively assembling a fully customized product. This is coming at it from an economics/history & /biology/practical chemistry perspective. These two approaches were in the book Unbounding the Future that Eric, Chris Peterson, and I co-wrote. My standardized parts approach is in one of the scenarios, but is not explicitly called out and named.
The result is a massive improvement in cost, quality and innovative possibilities as a result of moving to atomic precision. We see energy costs dropping by 60% for desalination and 99% for purification. Meanwhile, purity reaches unparalleled levels. The NSF says that we have achieved the 'Holy Grail' of separation science. With conventional technologies, you can get lower energy, but only with low purity (low selectivity). You can get high selectivity, but only with soaring energy costs. Separation science has been trying to crack this problem for decades. They call it "the Holy Grail." We can do the lowest energy possible under the laws of physics coupled with highest purity. (A definite moonshot.) We have created and can reliably manufacture one-atomic layer, defect-free membranes. (Another moonshot.)
Once you've cracked these problems, there's a plethora of 'impossible things' that become achievable, and we can take care of a host of problems that currently have people very upset, including environmental problems. Our approach solves problems while the customer saves money - CAPEX costs drop 80%, OPEX drops 50%. Sharing the savings with the customer makes adoption easy.
There are problems that people haven't yet fully understood, let alone cracked, that we can solve cost effectively. People are only starting to figure out how great has been the negative impact of water contaminants introduced since 1946 on mortality and morbidity. Our low cost solutions will save a lot of lives.
Other things come into play - the ultra small footprint enables distributed systems. The cost benefits of centralized systems disappear. We expect to see the development of unique insights into what will change as this constraint is lifted. Another point where we will see innovation stems from the higher purity levels. Example, a minor impurity in the water for semiconductor manufacturing can cost $30M in reduced value in a single manufacturing run. Higher purity is going to help known processes. But there must be technologies that aren't possible right now will come into being with higher purity and lower costs.
https://explorersfoundation.org/glyphery/653.html
November 1, 2026