With more than 2.2 billion people residing in water-stressed regions, the urgency to address water-related diseases is evident. The United Nations reports an alarming 3.5 million annual deaths due to such diseases. A team from Shanghai Jiao Tong University has unveiled a groundbreaking solar-powered atmospheric water harvesting technology, presenting a potential solution to supply clean water in arid regions, as detailed in their publication in Applied Physics Reviews, an AIP Publishing journal.
Author Ruzhu Wang emphasized the versatility of this atmospheric water harvesting technology, highlighting its application in meeting diverse daily water needs, including household drinking water, industrial water, and personal hygiene.
Overcoming Traditional Challenges
Historically, injecting salt into hydrogels presented challenges, as higher salt content often reduced the hydrogel’s swelling capacity, leading to salt leakage and decreased water absorption. Wang noted their success in maintaining optimal properties even when injecting substantial amounts of salt into the polymer.
Innovative Hygroscopic Gel and System Design
The researchers developed a super hygroscopic gel using plant derivatives and hygroscopic salts, exhibiting unprecedented water absorption and retention capabilities. This gel, cost-effective and straightforward to prepare, is particularly suitable for large-scale applications. In outdoor prototype demonstrations, the team observed water release during weak sunlight, showcasing the system’s resilience.
The team’s system design incorporated desorption and condensation chambers configured in parallel, utilizing a turbofan in the condensation chamber to achieve over 90% water recovery during desorption. This innovative approach allows simultaneous adsorption and desorption, even in low sunlight conditions.
Future Applications and Optimizations
The team envisions optimizing the system’s performance for widespread water generation applications. Future efforts will focus on achieving simultaneous adsorption and desorption using renewable energy sources, aiming to maximize daily water yield per unit mass of adsorbent. Beyond water production, these materials may find applications in dehumidification, agriculture irrigation, and thermal management for electronic devices.
As the global water crisis intensifies, this solar-powered water harvesting breakthrough offers a ray of hope, showcasing the potential to transform water scarcity challenges into sustainable solutions.
By Impact Lab