Nanotechnology may conjure up images of tiny robots, or machines in our blood stream, but what about really cool dirt? DIME, a company based in the United Arab Emirates, has licensed a nanotech process to create hydrophobic sand. The extremely thin coating on each grain causes it to repel water. While similar technologies have existed for several years (see the video for ‘Magic Sand‘ below), DIME sells a plastic wrapped hydrophobic sand that can be used to create an artificial water table. This high tech sand bag, called a HST-roll, could change the nature of farming in the Middle East. With a production of more than 3 thousand tonnes a day, DIME is on the path to help the desert bloom.

Water scarcity is an enormous problem around the world. While potable water gets all the press, irrigation is where much of the consumption happens (up to 85% in the Middle East). Regions with sandy soil leach water away as it is being used, and salt rises to the top. That’s a lethal combination for crops. DIME’s HST-rolls work by forming a giant water-proof layer under the topsoil. You lay them out like a pool liner. When crops are grown in the soil above, less water is needed because it isn’t sucked deep underground. It also prevents salt from flowing into the topsoil. Water use could be cut by as much as 35% (granted these numbers are from DIME itself).

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