Articles tagged with "water-harvesting"
MIT scientists make hydrogel to pull water from air with zero power
MIT scientists have developed an innovative, origami-inspired hydrogel device that passively harvests clean drinking water from atmospheric moisture without requiring any external power source. The black, window-sized panel, made from a water-absorbent hydrogel enclosed in a glass chamber with a cooling polymer coating, exploits natural temperature fluctuations between night and day to absorb and then release water vapor. Tested in California’s Death Valley, one of the driest places on Earth, the prototype successfully extracted up to 160 milliliters of water daily even at low humidity levels (around 21%), demonstrating its effectiveness in arid environments. The hydrogel’s unique composition, stabilized with glycerol to prevent salt leakage, ensures the collected water remains safe to drink without the need for additional filtration. Its dome-shaped, bubble wrap–like surface design increases absorption efficiency by maximizing surface area. Unlike previous technologies that depend on electricity, batteries, or solar panels, this device operates autonomously, making it particularly suitable for resource-limited
materialshydrogelwater-harvestingclean-water-technologyenergy-free-devicesustainable-materialsMIT-innovationUS scientists build ‘fog guitar’ that strums water from thin air
Researchers at Virginia Tech have developed an innovative atmospheric water harvesting device called the "fog guitar," which significantly improves upon traditional fog collection methods. Traditional fog nets, used for centuries, suffer from design limitations such as clogging due to small holes and inefficiency from large holes letting droplets pass through. In 2018, the team introduced the "fog harp," which replaced horizontal wires with vertical fibers to increase water collection efficiency by two to seven times. However, the fog harp faced a critical issue: under heavy fog, surface tension caused the vertical fibers to tangle and clump, reducing performance when water was most abundant. To solve this, the researchers created hybrid "fog guitar" designs that reintroduced a limited number of horizontal supports—akin to guitar frets—to prevent fiber tangling while avoiding clogging. By testing seven variations with different numbers of these "frets," they identified an optimal configuration that balances the prevention of tangling and clogging, maximizing water collection efficiency even in dense fog.
energywater-harvestingsustainable-technologyatmospheric-water-collectionfog-harvestinghybrid-designVirginia-Tech-researchScientists accidentally create material that harvests water from air
materialsnanomaterialswater-harvestingcapillary-condensationenvironmental-technologysustainable-materialsenergy-efficient-solutionsWhat’s Required To Install A Source Hydropanel?
energywater-harvestingclean-technologysustainable-livingoff-grid-solutionshydropanelsinstallation-process