Manhat to focus on natural water distillation

Abu Dhabi-based startup Manhat is all set to focus on natural water distillation based on local innovation, said Dr Saeed Alhassan, founder, Manhat.

The startup is a deep technology venture that utilises patents with research and developments done in UAE to commercialise its technology.

“Our technology is based on physical sciences and not on computer programming like other startups. Additionally, companies working in the water domain are based on imported technologies compared to ours; which is based on local innovation,” said Alhassan, who is a PhD holder in chemical engineering and a faculty at Khalifa University. He is the first recipient of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Medal of Scientific Excellence in 2017 and has 13 inventions disclosures and seven granted patents.

Manhat was established in November 2019 with an idea that evolved from examining the water challenge across the world and the current solutions used to address the water shortage. “We invented a method to produce water using natural distillation on open surfaces and other methods to irrigate crops and transport water as well,” added Alhassan.

“The current solutions for water crisis is always to use electricity as mediator in running equipment for producing water through desalination processes. However, water is naturally available through the water cycle. Hence, we needed to decouple electricity from water production because it is the most sustainable method to produce water all the time.”

Currently, the enterprise is funded through bootstrapping and personal investments and is in process to attract seed funding for its pilot project.

Dr Saeed, said: “I started this journey few years back to provide genuine and sustainable solutions to our water challenges. The success of this venture will be determined by different factors but the most important one is to break the mold of thinking both locally and internationally with regard to water. This will take some time because it is the cliché situation of new technology that needs sometime to be adopted compared to existing known technologies.”

The patents used by Manhat are partially supported by Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development through their Takamul programme; which focuses on enhancing innovation by supporting patent applications for individuals and companies alike. — sandhya@khaleejtimes.com

Sandhya D'Mello

Journalist. Period. My interests are Economics, Finance and Information Technology. Prior to joining Khaleej Times, I have worked with some leading publications in India, including the Economic Times.