AAB-‐E-‐HAYAAT
ZARKHEZ Submission
#:
483
AAB-‐E-‐HAYAAT
ZARKHEZ
is
a
super
absorbent
polymer
which
can
absorb
water
up
to
1000
times
of
its
own
weight.
When
mixed
in
soil,
it
slowly
releases
water
and
macro
nutrients
that
are
required
by
the
crop
hence,
cuts
the
requirement
of
fertilizer
by
50%
and
that
of
water
by
70%.
It
will
become
a
part
of
soil,
make
it
fertile,
and
undergo
biodegradation
without
formation
of
toxic
species.
Idea Origin
Pakistan is an agricultural economy. The fertile plains of the Indus defined the lifestyle of the
people in the region millennia ago. However, the droughts in the desert regions of Pakistan
claim thousands of lives lost due to hunger.
In 2009-2010 this drought developed over the upper part of Pakistan that is Punjab, Khyber,
Gilgit, Kashmir and Northern Baluchistan. Apart from regional discrimination, Rabi crops all
over Pakistan are facing 4-5% annual decrease due to water scarcity.
Much of the summer rains are not available for crop production for longer periods due to a
rapid run-off because of torrential showers. At other occasions, rain may be so light that the
precipitation evaporates before the water can penetrate into the root zone. Rainwater alone is
insufficient for agricultural requirements. On the other hand, The Himalayan glacier, whose
ice melt replenishes the Indus River’s annual freshwater, is receding by about one meter - the
approximate equivalent of 3.3 feet - per year due to global warming.
The idea of developing a Aab-E-Hayaat was conceptualized by two students of grade 11,
Hassan Sohail and Hasham Tanveer. They realized that super-absorbent polymers are an easy
solution to this problem. However, they had to tackle the disadvantages of the super-
absorbent polymers available in the market today. The two spent months understanding and
learning about the technology from Shayan Sohail, a chemical engineer from University of
Engineering and Technology Lahore, who acted as the guide and instructor for the two.
The two lived in different cities and collaborated the development of Aab-E-Hayaat virtually.
They spent months understanding and learning about the technology from Shayan Sohail, a
chemical engineer from University of Engineering and Technology Lahore, who acted as the
guide and instructor for the two. During this time, Sarib Zaman, a classmate of Hassan’s
showed interest in the project and decided to become an active part of it.
Our Solution
AAB-E-HAYAAT ZARKHEZ is a potassium polyacrylate based super absorbent which can
retain water up to 1000 times of its own weight up to a year and releases it slowly according
to the need of the soil/crop along with all the essential nutrients required by the crop. It can
be used in vast agricultural lands, large to small scale plantation, as well as household
vegetation and plantation.
Once mixed with the agricultural soil up to 10%, it can be used over 4-6 yearly cycles until it
biodegrades and becomes a part of soil without forming any toxic species. The characteristics
AAB-E-HAYAAT ZARKHEZ possesses are as follows:
• High absorption capacity in saline and hard water conditions
• Optimized absorbency under load (AUL)
• Lowest soluble content and residual monomer
• Low price
• High durability and stability in the swelling environment and during storage
• Gradual biodegradability without formation of toxic species
• pH neutrality after swelling in water
• Photo-stability
• Re wetting capability
AAB-E-HAYAAT ZARKHEZ is the solution for all the problems related to water crisis in
agriculture. Following are the few detailed advantages of using AAB-E-HAYAAT
ZARKHEZ:
• Improves soil quality, preserves water and resists drought stress
• Increases seed sprouting and seedling development leading to better farm
success
• From the environmental aspects, it is non-polluting and biodegradable, helps
in reducing irrigation frequency and water consumption and creates a simple
cyclic process to provide water directly to roots and prevent soil compaction
• In agriculture and agroforestry, it acts as micro water reservoirs at plant roots.
They absorb natural and supplied water 600-1000 times their own weight and
release it slowly on account of root capillary suction mechanism thus
preventing water loss in soil by leaching and evaporation
• It can store the excess water that cause flooding in summers and utilize it in
winter for compensating Rabi crop water shortfall
• It can keep the soil moisture up to desired level with continuous release of
nutrients and hence, it can reduce the barren land
• Form a consistent cyclic process of absorption and release of water; the water
so released can provide optimum moisture for quick germination and seedling
maturation. Thus, it reduces seedling mortality by several folds in nurseries
• In cold regions, death during germination and maturation is common due to
moisture freezing in & around plant root tissue. Absorbed moisture in
hydrogels does not freeze and makes easy accessibility to plants. It also
regulates seedling growth temperature preventing death by freezing
• It can help save water and labor by reducing irrigation frequency, help
overcome drought conditions and act as soil conditioners, prevent leaching in
sandy soils, runoffs in mountainous and sloping fields, improve virescence
efficiency and restore soil biota
• It can reduce overuse of fertilizers and pesticides in fields. The chemicals so
absorbed with water are slowly released thus extending the operational life
and uptake efficacy by root systems
• It acts as soil matter flocculant. It closely binds loose soil thus forming loams
that can help better root latching. Simultaneously, the repeated absorb-release
mechanism prevents over compaction of soil minerals and provides space for
aeration and development of soil edaphon.
• Low rates of soil application – 1-2 kg/ha for nursery horticultural crops; 2.5-5
kg/ ha for field crops
• It has a wide area of application ranging from agriculture, forestry, industrial
planting, municipal gardening, drought management, water conservation, it
helps reduce soil erosion by surface run-offs, fertilizer and pesticide leaching
to groundwater, reducing the cost of water and irrigation and success rate at
growth and high yields of crops.
Current State
We have currently developed our testing samples based on solution/suspension
polymerization. However, we want to develop a further refined and purified product by using
other methods such as:
• Emulsion Polymerization
• UV cured polymerization
The products developed by all these methods have slightly different characteristics such as
swelling index and cross-linkage. Moreover, UV cured method is highly desirable as the
product prepared by it is in hard granular form and requires no purification step other than
drying on a conveyor belt whereas, in solution polymerization and emulsion polymerization,
purification steps are required. Currently, we are in search of a capable partner in R&D who
can provide resources (financial and equipment) for our lab scale development of AAB-E-
HAYAAT ZARKHEZ production process capable of producing it at cheapest possible prices
and with minimum material and simplest technology.
We are looking forward to developing lab scale process of all three methods in order to
analyze the cost, ease of operation, and categories of superabsorbents produced by these
processes.
Future prospects of the technology
AAB-E-HAYAAT ZARKHEZ has many other uses apart from agricultural one. It can
replace RO based water purification. Our Sodium Polyacrylate based product is capable of
absorbing 99.95% pure water up to 600 times of its own weight I-e if sea water containing
TDS amount of 70,000 mg/L is available to it, it will absorb a water having TDS 35 mg/L. It
is capable of releasing the water rapidly under UV light (Sunlight). This makes it a better
option than RO in following sectors:
• It can be used in places where electricity is not available or where electricity is
expensive
• It can become a part of emergency kits of NAVY and other public/ private ships
• It can also replace RO at industrial scale by development of AAB-E-HAYAAT based
absorption bed columns
Limitations
• The amount of water absorbed can be reduced up to 30% depending upon TDS in
water. (However, rain and river water have low level of TDS and no such significant
effect is expected)
• The amount of nutrient release depending upon soil can significantly change the cost
of the product
• The product performs better when it is dumped in the soil after absorbing water.
Variation in water absorption capacity can be expected with different applying
methods
