Engineers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have created a new device that collects drinking water from the air without the need for any energy source, even in the most dry environments, according to To study It was published on June 11 in the “Nature Water” magazine.
Currently, 2.2 billion people in the world suffer from lack of access to safe drinking water, and while pressure on traditional resources such as rivers, lakes and dams increases, the researchers believe that the proposed device is able to extract water from water vapor in the atmosphere, with high efficiency, and without the need for any energy source.
A device that works without electricity
The main author of the study “Xuani Gao” – a professor of mechanical and environmental engineering at the institute, explains that the device is similar to a medium -sized window panel covered with a black hydrogel that absorbs water vapor from the air, and enveloped with a glass room coated with a special cooling layer.
Hydrogel looks like the cover of black bubbles, enlarged by moisture absorption and then shrinks later in a movement similar to origami art. The water is then volatile inside the device and its condensation on the glass, to flow into an external drinking tube.
Jao explains in statements to Al -Jazeera.net that what distinguishes this device is its complete independence from energy sources; It does not need batteries, solar panels, or electricity from the network.
“The device also proven its efficiency in a field experience in the Valley of Death, California, which is the most dry areas in North America. Even in low humidity conditions, the device enables the production of up to 160 milliliters of drinking water per day, equivalent to about two thirds of a cup of water.”
“We have designed a square size device that we hope will be used in areas that lack resources, even those that do not have solar panels. It is evidence that the technology can be developed to meet real home needs in the future,” Gao explains. The efficiency of the device also rises with increased humidity, which makes it more effective in the tropical and moderate areas.
Scientific innovation in design and materials
The device relies on high -absorbing hydrogen, which is a soft and nicerinal substance mainly consisting of water and a network of polymer fibers. Unlike other systems that use metal organic structures that lack elasticity, hydrogen in this innovation expands when water absorbing, increasing its ability to keep steam.
But the biggest challenge that researchers faced was to reduce the salinity of the extracted water, as some previous designs that used salts such as lithium chloride to improve absorption were suffering from salts leakage to the resulting water, according to the main author of the study.
To solve this problem, the researchers added glycerol to hydrogel, a compound that helps stabilize salt inside the material and prevent leakage. Hydrogel is also designed in a way that prevents the formation of nanoparticles that allow salts to exit. According to the tests, the salinity rate in the resulting water was much lower than the permissible limits of drinking water.
As for the shape of the hydrogel, it was reshaped to take a small bubble body such as the wrapping cover, which doubles the surface area and increases the amount of water absorbed. The device was wrapped with a glass room equipped with a cooling layer, connected to a simple tube to collect distilled water.
The researchers tested the device in November 2023 within a whole week in the Valley of Death, where production rates ranged between 57 and 161.5 millimeters per day, through different humidity levels from 21 to 88 percent. In all cases, the new innovation outperforms most other devices, whether it works negatively or even active using energy.