2604 | International Journal of Current Engineering and Technology, Vol.4, No.4 (Aug 2014) Research Article International Journal of Current Engineering and Technology E-ISSN 2277 – 4106, P-ISSN 2347 - 5161 ©2014 INPRESSCO ® , All Rights Reserved Available at http://inpressco.com/category/ijcet Powdered Water - A Compact Solution for Drought Stricken Farms Jyothi Meher Nori Ȧ* and R. Laxmana Reddy Ḃ Ȧ Department of Chemical Engineering, Ḃ Civil Engineering Department, CBIT, Andhra Pradesh, India Accepted 17 July 2014, Available online 01 Aug 2014, Vol.4, No.4 (Aug 2014) Abstract Droughts today are the biggest concern in today’s ever growing world due to various environmental factors such as global warming, greenhouse effect to site a few. Due to this very reason a new cure has been discovered to curb this problem. A super absorbent polymer known as “SOLID RAIN” can be used to reduce this problem that mainly arises during the summer and winter seasons in various tropical and sub- tropical countries in many parts of the world. In this paper we will be talking about potassium polyacrylate used in the manufacturing of solid rain and how this chemical is capable of soaking water upto 500 times its size. We will also be talking about the various advantages of this new technology and how this product may prove to be the world’s greatest s uccess towards achieving an eco-friendly and ecological sustainable environment especially in the third world countries, so that future generations may also meet their needs. Keywords: Droughts, potassium polyacrylate, soaking, super-absorbent and mechanism. 1. Introduction 1 When a region notes a deficiency in water supply either surface or underground water for an extended period of time due to climatic conditions this situation can be termed as drought. When a region receives a constant below average precipitation for a very long time (years) droughts are said to occur. Environmental factors may not be the sole cause for droughts, even human activities such as over farming, deforestation, over use of fertilizers and erosion which adversely affect the ability of land to capture and hold water. Sometimes a combination of both environmental factors and human activities may result in droughts. For this problem to be resolved a new technology recently developed can be used. This is known as powdered water. Figure 1 Farm affected due to drought. 1.1 What is powdered water *Corresponding author: Jyothi Meher Nori Powdered water also known as rain is composed of potassium polyacrylate. This polymer can easily be retained in it for an entire year on addition to soil. This material can absorb water up to 500 times its size. On addition of this polymer to water we see water being converted into a thick, translucent gel type compound. A whole liter of water can be transformed into this gel like compound by using just 10 grams of solid rain. (David Cash et al 2007). Figure 2 Solidified water crystals 1.2 Super Absorbent Polymer Polymers consist of molecules having high molar masses and consist of a large number of repeating units. Polymers are formed by chemical reactions containing monomers which are joined sequentially, forming a chain. Super absorbent polymers (SAP) and Hydrogels are water- absorbing and water-holding materials. The most important characteristic of these polymers are their ability to absorb and keep the surrounding area