Aether
Aether is a speculative idea for solving the World's water problems.
It floats in any water source, sucking up liquid by capillary action. The sun's rays evaporate off clean water, leaving impurities behind. The vapour travels down the sides and condenses in the submerged, and hence cooler base.
Aether is a totally passive system and can be scaled from individual to megacity use.
This was a collaborative project as part of Vodafone's Future Agenda initiative.
Video explanation
Personal version
Multiple hookup to pipeline
Open water version
Aether & farm pods
Floating farm