Austin (KXAN) —Researchers at the University of Texas have developed materials that draw water from the air and can be used in agriculture and drinking. The material is a thin film polymer that absorbs water from the air into a gel and when the water is released it returns to the polymer.Job is Published in the scientific journal Nature Communications earlier this month..
Youhong “Nancy” Guo, the lead author of the dissertation and a former PhD student at UT, said the team was inspired by items found in the kitchen. She said, “Many things in our kitchen, such as flowers, salt, and sugar, can become lumps after being placed outside, which means they can absorb moisture in the air. I have.”
Guo’s team created the polymer using common ingredients such as konjac gum used in diets. This gum can attract water. The team mixes the ingredients into a liquid before freeze-drying. The assembly process is completed in just a few minutes.
“You can use it over and over again, literally over and over, without compromising performance,” Guo said.
How does a water-absorbent film work?
Guo explained that the gum on the film attracts water vapor from the air. At this point, the film turns into a gel. When heated to about 110 degrees Fahrenheit, a so-called hydrophobic reaction occurs.
The gel releases water vapor into the air. It can then be collected and cooled to liquid water. At this point, the gel will return to its original film state. You can then repeat this process. “You can run multiple cycles, like 15 to 24 cycles per day,” Guo said.
When the humidity exceeds 15%, the film can attract water. Nancy said the film can be of any size or shape that one needs, as it begins as a liquid before it is freeze-dried.
This project was originally funded by DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, for soldiers working in the desert.
Guo said a pound of material would cost $ 2. It can produce 1-2 gallons of water per cycle and over 40 gallons of water per day.
Is the collected water safe to drink?
According to Guo, the water collected by this method also collects bacteria in the air, so it needs to be boiled before drinking. But she said it was safe for agriculture.
“This new study is about a practical solution that people can use to get water in the hottest and driest places on the planet,” said a professor of materials science and mechanical engineering at Walker Mechanical Engineering at Cockrell Institute of Technology. One Guihua Yu said at a press conference. Release sent by the university.
“This could allow millions of people who don’t have consistent access to drinking water to install a simple, easy-to-operate water generator at home,” Yu said in the same release. I am.
Over the last few decades, water scarcity has become a bigger problem. Almost half of the land on earth, According to the United Nations, 41.3% is considered dry. Forty-four percent of the world’s agriculture is practiced in these areas.
World Wildlife Fund Report 2.7 billion people around the world have trouble locating water at least once a month. One to one billion people do not have easy access to freshwater.
This problem is exacerbated by climate change. Droughts are becoming more and more frequent and extreme. According to the Environmental Protection Agency Average rainfall in Texas is expected to decline. Since the 1950s, the state’s aquifers have dropped in half.
The research team plans to optimize the material and find better ways to convert water vapor to liquid.
