Turn desert air into drinking water in a completely new way

When the environment is changing rapidly, the pressure to find ways to solve life problems is increasingly pressing on scientists. Turning air into water is one of them.

A new prototype device, developed at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia, can absorb water vapor and then release liquid water as required. It is an invaluable invention for those who live in areas where water is scarce like arid deserts.

Scientists have found a way to keep this hydrogel in solid form until we need to turn it into water.(Photo: Imani / Unsplash).

The key to the device is a special hydrogel based on calcium chloride salts. It is an extremely good water absorbent but liquefied when absorbing water vapor. Thanks to advanced technology, scientists have found a way to keep this hydrogel in solid form until we need to turn it into water.

"The most remarkable aspect of the hydrogel is its high performance and low cost," said Renyuan Li of the research team.

With an estimated 13 trillion tons of water vapor in the atmosphere, it is possible to harvest a portion of that steam to turn them into a water source for humans, an extremely big step, more specifically for hundreds of millions of people. must live without clean water out there. This is something that many scientists are busy studying.

Hydrogel compounds are being released into water.(Photo: KAUST).

Previously calcium chloride was once considered, but turning it into water-containing material was in fact extremely difficult. Here, the team helped solve this problem by converting salt into a polymer, helping to retain its shape until heated; In addition, carbon nanotubes will help release water.

The idea is that the device can take water from the air at night, then release the water when heated during the day.

That's exactly how the researchers' samples worked: 35 grams (1.23 ounces) of hydrogels can draw 37 grams (1.31 ounces) of water in one night with a relative humidity of about 60 percent.

The next day, a 2.5-hour hydrogel exposure can release 20 grams (0.71 ounces) of water. This amount of water stored in clean equipment can be ready to drink immediately. The Hydrogel is then also ready to use again - the researchers said.

The collected water is then released in one cycle.(Photo: KAUST).

However, scientists are still not satisfied - they hope to adjust the design so that water can be released continuously.

The fact that there are so many competing devices out there has the potential to solve human survival problems that we think are good.

Demonstrating that earlier this year, teams from the United States demonstrated a specially built metal device to absorb water - this is another invention that does not require a separate power source to operate.

Another group of scientists created a synthetic material inspired by the Namib desert beetle, which also showed promise as a way of condensing and capturing liquid water from the air as needed.

With all these innovations, the challenge is to turn them from a prototype into a commercial product, but this new hydrogel-based device is proving to be superior when it comes to many conditions.

"This type of air transformer is cheap and affordable; works perfectly with wide humidity; no need to charge; and therefore is particularly suitable for clean water production in remote areas" researcher wrote.

The study is published in the Journal of Environmental Science and Technology.