Our Research Smart porous hydrogels for atmospheric water harvesting
Renewable solar energy is utilized for releasing water from hydrogels in a prototype of water harvesting device Credit: 123RF
Principal Investigators
Xuanhe Zhao
- Noyce Career Development Professor
- Associate Professor
- Department of Mechanical Engineering
Gang Chen
- Carl Richard Soderberg Professor of Power Engineering
- Director, Pappalardo Micro and Nano Engineering Laboratories
- Director, DOE EFRC: Solid-State Solar-Thermal Energy Conversion Center (S3TEC)
- Department of Mechanical Engineering
Challenge:
How can we develop new technologies for cost-effective and energy-efficient atmospheric water extraction beyond conventional hygroscopic materials?
Research Strategy
- Develop a theory to estimate the amount of oozing water in smart porous hydrogels with various constituents
- Synthesis smart porous hydrogels with the optimized ability for atmospheric water harvesting
- Perform systematic characterizations of structures, water transportation kinetics, and thermodynamic properties of the smart porous hydrogels
- Design a prototype of a portable water harvesting device with system-level evaluation
Project description
Researchers across a variety of disciplines are looking for new ways to address ever-increasing water scarcity around the globe, especially in decentralized communities and arid regions. Developing technologies that harvest water from air have emerged as a promising strategy. Existing versions typically rely on water adsorption using a various materials such as hydrogels and salts. Unfortunately, these strategies tend to be slow-producing and low-yielding, which limits the potential of these devices to scale up to satisfy growing water needs sustainably. This research aims to design a smart porous hydrogel to serve as a cost-effective and energy-efficient water harvesting device that is faster and more effective at water recycling than existing technologies.
The technology will involve an intrinsic nanoporous network of hydrogels that can be utilized to facilitate water capture through capillary condensation. Due to the hydrogel’s thermo-responsiveness, it requires only a small amount of low-grade heat to extract out water compared to the energy needed to overcome the high latent heat of water evaporation. The device will also enable long-term recyclability and fast water adsorption-desorption processes. This project will not only facilitate fundamental studies on new mechanisms for water adsorption and transport kinetics but it will also open up new routes for efficient atmospheric water extraction by harnessing smart responsive hydrogels.
Outcomes
- At the molecular level, used molecular design, theoretical modeling, and atomic simulations to understand principles to achieve high water uptake in hydrogels
- At the structure level, developed viable engineering approaches to fabricate interconnected yet highly stable porous structures in hydrogels for enhancing water extraction kinetics
- At the system level, developed manufacturing protocols to fabricate hygroscopic hydrogels in a meter scale, which could be a candidate solution for family-scale freshwater productions in decentralized areas
Additional Details
Impact Areas
- Water
Research Themes
- Water Resources & Infrastructure
- Sustainability & Adaptation
- Modeling & Data Analytics
Year Funded
- 2020
Grant Type
- Seed Grant
Status
- Completed