Innovation

Dry water: a medicine for hunger and a drought

Solid Rain was created by Mexican chemical engineer Sergio Jésus Rico Velasco. He initially wanted to find an absorbent material that could be used in nappies to absorb lots of liquid in a small space.

Solid Rain is an absorbent polymer called potassium polyacrylate. This polymer is capable of soaking in water up to 500 times its original size. A whole litre of water can be absorbed in just 10 grams of Solid Rain, which then converts into a thick, translucent gel.

The liquid retained in this gel will stay there for a year without evaporating or seeping out. Farm plots showed up to 300 per cent increases in crop yield when Solid Rain was used.