1
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Kanooni A, Kohan MR. Fog water harvesting with cylindrical brush. Sci Rep 2024; 14:19679. [PMID: 39181921 PMCID: PMC11344784 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-70637-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2024] [Accepted: 08/20/2024] [Indexed: 08/27/2024] Open
Abstract
In this study, an efficient fog collector-type 1 and 2 cylindrical brush-has been introduced and its harvesting performance compared to other conventional collectors under field and laboratory conditions. Under field conditions, type 1 cylindrical brush with Raschel and aluminum mesh was installed in the inlet of the humidity front of the Caspian Sea to Ardabil plain in Abi-beyglu in the northwest of Iran. The results of the analysis of the collected water revealed that type 1 cylindrical brush collected 9.3% and aluminum mesh collected 4.3% more water than Raschel mesh. Under laboratory conditions, by applying different fog speeds, the performance of three conventional collectors and two proposed cylindrical brush were determined. The results indicated that type 2 cylindrical brush had the highest efficiency compared to others, and due to the lack of clogging, its efficiency did not diminish over time. Upon increasing the speed of the output fog, the amount of collected water and accordingly the efficiency of the collectors increased. Type 2 cylindrical brush showed the highest increase in efficiency at high fog speeds. Its maximum value reached about 50%, while the maximum efficiency of Raschel collector was equal to 28%. In general, it can be stated that cylindrical brush introduced in this study, in addition to the high performance of fog harvesting and the high efficiency of water collection, has a high resistance against strong winds. Therefore, it can be a suitable collector for water harvesting in foggy areas without any implementation problems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amin Kanooni
- Department of Water Engineering, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran.
| | - Mohammad Reza Kohan
- Department of Water Engineering, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran
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2
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Bai X, Cui E, Wang X, Zhang L, Yuan Z, Liu Y. Multibioinspired Hybrid Superwetting Surface for Efficient Fog Collection and Power Generation. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2024; 16:44298-44304. [PMID: 39108070 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.4c08784] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/23/2024]
Abstract
Obtaining water and renewable energy from the atmosphere provides a potential solution to the growing energy shortage. Leveraging the synergistic inspiration from desert beetles, cactus spines, and rice leaves, here, a multibioinspired hybrid wetting rod (HWR) is prepared through simple solution immersion and laser etching, which endows an efficient water collection from the atmosphere. Importantly, benefiting from the bionic asymmetric pattern design and the three-dimensional structure, the HWR possesses an omnidirectional fog collection with a rate of up to 23 g cm-2 h-1. We further show that the HWR could be combined with a droplet-based electricity generator to convert kinetic energy from falling droplets into electrical energy with a maximum output voltage of 200 V and a current of 2.47 μA to light up 28 LEDs. Collectively, this research provides a strategy for synchronous fog collection and power generation, which is promising for environmentally friendly energy production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiangge Bai
- State Key Laboratory of High-performance Precision Manufacturing, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, P. R. China
| | - Enming Cui
- State Key Laboratory of High-performance Precision Manufacturing, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, P. R. China
| | - Xu Wang
- State Key Laboratory of High-performance Precision Manufacturing, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, P. R. China
| | - Lemin Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of High-performance Precision Manufacturing, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, P. R. China
| | - Zichao Yuan
- State Key Laboratory of High-performance Precision Manufacturing, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, P. R. China
| | - Yahua Liu
- State Key Laboratory of High-performance Precision Manufacturing, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, P. R. China
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3
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Yamada Y, Oka J, Isobe K, Horibe A. Effect of Droplet-Removal Processes on Fog-Harvesting Performance on Wettability-Controlled Wire Array with Staggered Arrangement. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2024. [PMID: 39078231 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.4c01942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/31/2024]
Abstract
Development of freshwater resources is vital to overcoming severe worldwide water scarcity. Fog harvesting has attracted attention as a candidate technology that can be used to obtain fresh water from a stream of foggy air without energy input. Drainage of captured droplets from fog harvesters is necessary to maintain the permeability of harp-shaped harvesters. In the present study, we investigated the effect of the droplet-removal process on the amount of water harvested using a harvester constructed by wettability-controlled wires with an alternating and staggered arrangement. Droplet transfer from hydrophobic to hydrophilic wires, located upstream and downstream of the fog flow, respectively, was observed with a fog velocity greater than 1.5 m/s. The proportion of harvesting resulting from droplet transfer exceeded 30% of the total, and it reflected more than 20% increase of the harvesting performance compared with that of a harvester with wires of the same wettability: this value varied with the adhesive property of the wires and fog velocity. Scaled-up and multilayered harvesters were developed to enhance harvesting performance. We demonstrated certain enhancements under multilayered conditions and obtained 15.99 g/30 min as the maximum harvested amount, which corresponds to 13.3% of the liquid contained in the fog stream and is enhanced by 10% compared with that without droplet transfer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yutaka Yamada
- Faculty of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-naka Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8530, Japan
| | - Junya Oka
- Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-naka Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8530, Japan
| | - Kazuma Isobe
- Faculty of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-naka Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8530, Japan
| | - Akihiko Horibe
- Faculty of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-naka Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8530, Japan
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4
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Yang K, Duan C, Meng Z, Liu Y, Liu Y, Xie Z, Ni Y. Bioinspired construction of petal-like regenerated PVDF/cellulose fibers for efficient fog harvesting. Carbohydr Polym 2024; 335:122069. [PMID: 38616091 DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2024.122069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2024] [Revised: 02/28/2024] [Accepted: 03/14/2024] [Indexed: 04/16/2024]
Abstract
Water collection from atmospheric fog was deemed to be an efficient and sustainable strategy to defuse the freshwater scarcity crisis. Fog harvesting and trapping fibers, therefore, has aroused extensive interest due to their ease of preparation, weave, and use. However, the traditional fibers used in fog collector usually have a low fog collection capacity and efficiency because of their unreasonable morphology and structure design. Herein, we proposed a simple process to construct advanced fibers using a one-step wet spinning of hydrophobic polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and hydrophilic cellulose mixture fiber for fog harvesting. The as-prepared fibers featured a petaloid structure and surface hydrophobic gradient, thus facilitating fog deposition, water droplet formation, and drainage. The unique longitudinal groove structure above enabled the hybrid fiber to achieve an excellent fog collection efficiency of 2750.26 mg/cm2/h per monofilament, which outstripped most of other fiber materials. When woven these fibers were in a longitudinal array network with an interval of 1 mm, and the fog collection efficiency can maintain at 10.30 L/m2/h. Therefore, this work provided a new strategy for further exploration of effective fog collection by cellulose-based fiber materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kang Yang
- College of Bioresources Chemical and Materials Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science and Technology, Xi'an 710021, China
| | - Chao Duan
- College of Bioresources Chemical and Materials Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science and Technology, Xi'an 710021, China; Yibin Grace Group Co., Ltd, Yinbin 644000, China.
| | - Zixuan Meng
- College of Bioresources Chemical and Materials Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science and Technology, Xi'an 710021, China
| | - Yuanmei Liu
- College of Bioresources Chemical and Materials Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science and Technology, Xi'an 710021, China
| | - Yueyin Liu
- College of Bioresources Chemical and Materials Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science and Technology, Xi'an 710021, China
| | - Zengyin Xie
- Yibin Grace Group Co., Ltd, Yinbin 644000, China
| | - Yonghao Ni
- Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, USA.
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5
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Mhatre NV, Kumar S. Pinning-depinning transition of droplets on inclined substrates with a three-dimensional topographical defect. SOFT MATTER 2024; 20:3529-3540. [PMID: 38602343 DOI: 10.1039/d4sm00081a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
Droplets on inclined substrates can depin and slide freely above a critical substrate inclination angle. Pinning can be caused by topographical defects on the substrate, and understanding the influence of defect geometry on the pinning-depinning transition is important for diverse applications such as fog harvesting, droplet-based microfluidic devices, self-cleaning surfaces, and inkjet printing. Here, we develop a lubrication-theory-based model to investigate the motion of droplets on inclined substrates with a single three-dimensional Gaussian-shaped defect that can be in the form of a bump or a dent. A precursor-film/disjoining-pressure approach is used to capture contact-line motion, and a nonlinear evolution equation is derived which describes droplet thickness as a function of the position along the substrate and time. The evolution equation is solved numerically using an alternating direction implicit finite-difference scheme to study how the defect geometry influences the critical inclination angle and the shape of a pinned droplet. It is found that the critical substrate inclination angle increases as the defect becomes taller/deeper or wider along the direction lateral to the droplet-sliding direction. However, the critical inclination angle decreases as the defect becomes wider along the sliding direction. Below the critical inclination angle, the advancing contact line of the droplet at the droplet centerline is pinned to the defect at the point having maximum negative slope. Simple scaling relations that reflect the influence of defect geometry on the droplet retention force arising from surface tension are able to account for many of the trends observed in the numerical simulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ninad V Mhatre
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
| | - Satish Kumar
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
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6
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Mukhopadhyay A, Datta A, Dutta PS, Datta A, Ganguly R. Droplet Morphology-Based Wettability Tuning and Design of Fog Harvesting Mesh to Minimize Mesh-Clogging. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2024; 40:8094-8107. [PMID: 38567885 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.4c00075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/17/2024]
Abstract
Fog harvesting relies on intercepting atmospheric or industrial fog by placing a porous obstacle, for example, a mesh and collecting the deposited water. In the face of global water scarcity, such fog harvesting has emerged as a viable alternative source of potable water. Typical fog harvesting meshes suffer from poor collection efficiency due to aerodynamic bypassing of the oncoming fog stream and poor collection of the deposited water from the mesh. One pestering challenge in this context is the frequent clogging up of mesh pores by the deposited fog water, which not only yields low drainage efficiency but also generates high aerodynamic resistance to the oncoming fog stream, thereby negatively impacting the fog collection efficiency. Minimizing the clogging is possible by rendering the mesh fibers superhydrophobic, but that entails other detrimental effects like premature dripping and flow-induced re-entrainment of water droplets into the fog stream from the mesh fiber. Herein, we improvise on traditional interweaved metal mesh designs by defining critical parameters, viz., mesh pitch, shade coefficient, and fiber wettability, and deducing their optimal values from numerically and experimentally observed morphology of collected fog water droplets under various operating scenarios. We extend our investigations over a varying range of mesh-wettability, including superhydrophilic and hydrophobic fibers, and go on to find optimal shade coefficients which would theoretically render clog-proof fog harvesting meshes. The aerodynamic, deposition, and overall collection efficiencies are characterized. Hydrophobic meshes with square pores, having fiber diameters smaller than the capillary length scale of water, and an optimal shade coefficient are found to be the most effective design of such clog-proof meshes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arani Mukhopadhyay
- Advanced Materials Research and Applications (AMRA) Laboratory Department of Power Engineering, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700106, India
| | - Arkadeep Datta
- Advanced Materials Research and Applications (AMRA) Laboratory Department of Power Engineering, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700106, India
| | - Partha Sarathi Dutta
- Advanced Materials Research and Applications (AMRA) Laboratory Department of Power Engineering, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700106, India
| | - Amitava Datta
- Advanced Materials Research and Applications (AMRA) Laboratory Department of Power Engineering, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700106, India
| | - Ranjan Ganguly
- Advanced Materials Research and Applications (AMRA) Laboratory Department of Power Engineering, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700106, India
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7
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Wang M, Liu E, Jin T, Zafar SU, Mei X, Fauconnier ML, De Clerck C. Towards a better understanding of atmospheric water harvesting (AWH) technology. WATER RESEARCH 2024; 250:121052. [PMID: 38171174 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2023.121052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024]
Abstract
Atmospheric water harvesting (AWH) technology is an emerging sustainable development strategy to deal with global water scarcity. To better understand the current state of AWH technology development, we conducted a bibliometric analysis highlighting three water harvesting technologies (fog harvesting, condensation, and sorption). By comprehensively reviewing the research progress and performing a comparative assessment of these technologies, we summarized past achievements and critically analyzed the different technologies. Traditional fog collectors are more mature, but their efficiency still needs to be improved. External field-driven fog harvesting and active condensation need to be driven by external forces, and passive condensation has high requirements for environmental humidity. Emerging bio-inspired fog harvesting and sorption technology provide new possibilities for atmospheric water collection, but they have high requirements for materials, and their commercial application is still to be further promoted. Based on the key characteristics of each technology, we presented the development prospects for the joint use of integrated/hybrid systems. Next, the water-energy relationship is used as a link to clarify the future development strategy of AWH technology in energy driving and conversion. Finally, we outlined the core ideas of AWH for both basic research and practical applications and described its limitless possibilities for drinking water supply and agricultural irrigation. This review provides an essential reference for the development and practical application of AWH technologies, which contribute to the sustainable utilization of water resources globally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Menglu Wang
- Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China; AgricultureIsLife, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, Liege University, Passage des Déportés 2, Gembloux 5030, Belgium
| | - Enke Liu
- Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China; State Key Laboratory of Hulless Barley and Yak Germplasm Resources and Genetic Improvement, Lhasa, Tibet 850002, China.
| | - Tao Jin
- State Key Laboratory of Hulless Barley and Yak Germplasm Resources and Genetic Improvement, Lhasa, Tibet 850002, China
| | - Saud-Uz Zafar
- Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Xurong Mei
- Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China; Key Laboratory of Dryland Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the People's Republic of China, Beijing 100081, China.
| | - Marie-Laure Fauconnier
- Laboratory of Chemistry of Natural Molecules, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, Liege University, Passage des Déportés 2, Gembloux 5030, Belgium
| | - Caroline De Clerck
- AgricultureIsLife, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, Liege University, Passage des Déportés 2, Gembloux 5030, Belgium
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8
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Ahmad M, Nighojkar A, Plappally A. A review of the methods of harvesting atmospheric moisture. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2024; 31:10395-10416. [PMID: 37924399 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-30727-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2023] [Indexed: 11/06/2023]
Abstract
Moisture is an inherent constituent of air present across the world. The relative humidity varies with the change in temperature and climate specific to a region. In some regions of the world, there may be a relatively inadequate number of grains of moisture in the air in comparison with other regions. These factors widen the scope for the deployment of decentralized technology to capture water. The effectiveness in capturing moisture gains significance in these regions. Among the numerous forms of moisture, fog and dew are studied in depth. Over time, flora and fauna in different ecosystems have adapted to capture moisture as well as repel excesses of it according to their requirements. Therefore, bio-inspired studies and tailored engineering strategies have been incorporated in this review. Since efficient technologies are required at moisture-scarce locations, active moisture harvesting has also been studied. The use of innovative materials along with different energy sources to capture water is elaborated. The effects of climate change and environmental contamination on harvested moisture are therefore assessed. Community participation and economical use of harvested fog or dew influence the sustainability of moisture-capture projects. Therefore, this article also provides an insight into the services of decentralized water-harvesting projects run by diverse organizations and researchers across the globe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meraj Ahmad
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, 342037, India.
| | - Amrita Nighojkar
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, 342037, India
- Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Defence Institute of Advanced Technology, Pune, 411025, India
| | - Anand Plappally
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, 342037, India
- Centre for Emerging Technologies for Sustainable Development, Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, 342037, India
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9
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Goswami S, Sidhpuria RM, Khandekar S. Effect of Droplet-Laden Fibers on Aerodynamics of Fog Collection on Vertical Fiber Arrays. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2023; 39:18238-18251. [PMID: 38059749 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c02022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/08/2023]
Abstract
Growing population, along with rapid urbanization, has led to severe water scarcity, necessitating development of novel techniques to mitigate this looming problem. Fog contains water in the form of liquid droplets suspended in air, which can be collected on a porous structure placed in the path of the fog flow. We first develop an artificial fog-generating system using the thermodynamic principle of mixing of air streams followed by condensation, which closely mimics the liquid water content and droplet size distribution of natural fog. We then investigate how collected fog droplets growing on fiber surfaces alter the aerodynamics of fog flow across vertical fiber arrays, called harps, thus affecting their fog collection efficiency. As deposited droplets grow on the fiber surface, they increase the area occluded by droplet-laden fibers, thus increasing the effective shade coefficient (SCact), which increases with time from its initial geometric value (SCgeo), eventually reaching a quasi-steady state, as droplet shedding due to gravity and droplet growth due to fog collection balance each other. We find that this difference in the SCgeo and SCact is governed by local fiber geometry and its physico-chemical morphology; the process dynamics is captured by a nondimensional number, SC*, which increases with the length scale corresponding to the critical volume of droplet shedding relative to the fiber diameter, V*. Thus, there is a significantly greater increase in the effective shade coefficient for thin fibers having larger values of V* as compared to fibers with larger diameters which have lower V* values. On hydrophobic fibers, the quasi-steady state is achieved faster, and the time-averaged SCact is lower as compared to hydrophilic fibers due to the lower critical volume of droplet shedding. The shape of droplets growing on harp fibers affects the aerodynamics of fog flow, its inertial capture mechanism, and efficiency, which can guide design considerations for fog harps toward achieving optimal fog collection performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sohom Goswami
- Department Of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute Of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur 208016, India
| | - Ravi M Sidhpuria
- Department Of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute Of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur 208016, India
| | - Sameer Khandekar
- Department Of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute Of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur 208016, India
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10
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Ding L, Dong S, Yu Y, Li X, An L. Bionic Surfaces for Fog Collection: A Comprehensive Review of Natural Organisms and Bioinspired Strategies. ACS APPLIED BIO MATERIALS 2023; 6:5193-5209. [PMID: 38104272 DOI: 10.1021/acsabm.3c00859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
Water scarcity has become a critical global threat, particularly in arid and underdeveloped regions. However, certain insects and plants have evolved the capability to obtain water from fog under these arid conditions. Bionic fog collection, characterized by passive harvesting, minimal energy requirements, and low maintenance costs, has proven to be an efficient method for water harvesting, offering a sustainable water source. This review introduces two superwettable surfaces, namely, superhydrophilic and superhydrophobic surfaces, detailing their preparation methods and applications in fog collection. The fog collection mechanisms of three typical natural organisms, Namib Desert beetles, spider silk, and cactus, along with their bionic surfaces for fog collection devices, are discussed. Additionally, other biological surfaces exhibiting fog transport properties are presented. The main challenges regarding the fabrication and application of bionic fog collection are summarized. Furthermore, we firmly believe that environmentally friendly, low-cost, and stable fog collection materials or devices hold promising prospects for future applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lan Ding
- College of Mechanical Engineering, North China University of Science and Technology, No. 21 Bohai Road, Caofeidian Xincheng, Tangshan 063210, China
| | - Shuliang Dong
- College of Mechanical Engineering, North China University of Science and Technology, No. 21 Bohai Road, Caofeidian Xincheng, Tangshan 063210, China
| | - Yifan Yu
- College of Mechanical Engineering, North China University of Science and Technology, No. 21 Bohai Road, Caofeidian Xincheng, Tangshan 063210, China
| | - Xianzhun Li
- College of Mechanical Engineering, North China University of Science and Technology, No. 21 Bohai Road, Caofeidian Xincheng, Tangshan 063210, China
| | - Libao An
- College of Mechanical Engineering, North China University of Science and Technology, No. 21 Bohai Road, Caofeidian Xincheng, Tangshan 063210, China
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11
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Zeng M, Qu Z, Zhang J. Experimental study on water collection performance of wire-to-plate electrostatic fog collector at various fog generation rates and fog flow velocities. Sep Purif Technol 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.seppur.2022.122465] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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12
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Rius-Ayra O, Biserova-Tahchieva A, Llorca-Isern N. Removal of dyes, oils, alcohols, heavy metals and microplastics from water with superhydrophobic materials. CHEMOSPHERE 2023; 311:137148. [PMID: 36351466 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.137148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2022] [Revised: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 11/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
A wide variety of pollutants can be currently found in water that are extremely difficult to remove due to their chemical composition and properties. A lot of effort has been made to tackle this issue that directly affects the environment. In this scenario, superhydrophobic surfaces, which have a water contact angle >150°, have emerged as an innovative technology that could be applied in different ways. Their environmental applications show promise in removing emerging pollutants from water. While the number of publications on superhydrophobic materials has remained largely unchanged since 2019, the number of articles on the environmental applications of superhydrophobic surfaces is still rising, corroborating the interest in this area. Herein, we briefly present the basis of superhydrophobicity and show the different materials that have been used to remove pollutants from water. We have identified five types of emerging pollutants that are efficiently removed by superhydrophobic materials: oils, microplastics, dyes, heavy metals, and ethanol. Finally, the future challenges of these applications are also discussed, considering the state of the art of the environmental applications of superhydrophobic materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oriol Rius-Ayra
- CPCM Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Química Física, Facultat de Química, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès 1, 08028, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Alisiya Biserova-Tahchieva
- CPCM Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Química Física, Facultat de Química, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès 1, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Nuria Llorca-Isern
- CPCM Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Química Física, Facultat de Química, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès 1, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
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13
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Jiang Y, Liu G, Yan X. Ionic Wind Driven Fog Collection in Windless Environment. Ind Eng Chem Res 2022. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.iecr.2c03937] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yuan Jiang
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Energy Chemical Process Intensification, Department of Chemical Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi 710049, China
| | - Guilian Liu
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Energy Chemical Process Intensification, Department of Chemical Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi 710049, China
| | - Xiaohong Yan
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Energy Chemical Process Intensification, Department of Chemical Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi 710049, China
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14
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Kowalski NG, Boreyko JB. Dynamics of fog droplets on a harp wire. SOFT MATTER 2022; 18:7148-7158. [PMID: 36093935 DOI: 10.1039/d2sm00674j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Fog harps effectively drain small droplets, which prevents clogging and results in more water harvested from fog compared to mesh nets. However, the dynamics of fog droplets coalescing and sliding down a vertical wire remain poorly understood. Here, we develop an analytical model that captures the physics of fog droplets draining down a single vertical wire. The driving forces are gravity and the surface energy released from coalescence events, whereas the dominant resisting forces are revealed to be inertia, contact angle hysteresis, and local viscous dissipation within the droplet's receding wedge. The average sliding velocity of fog droplets on a Teflon-coated wire was only half that of an uncoated stainless steel wire, due to non-coalescence events exclusive to the hydrophobic wire disrupting the momentum of droplet sliding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas G Kowalski
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, USA.
| | - Jonathan B Boreyko
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, USA.
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15
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Nguyen LT, Bai Z, Zhu J, Gao C, Zhang B, Guo J. Elastic Textile Threads for Fog Harvesting. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2022; 38:9136-9147. [PMID: 35849073 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.2c00634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The potential applications of textile materials in fog harvesting have long been demonstrated. This work designed novel fog harvesters according to the distinct features of elastic textile threads (ETTs) to enhance droplet capture, large-droplet growth, and droplet pouring and improve fog harvesting efficiency. We prepared m@ETTs (modified ETTs) using three novel chemical and physical methods. First, we prepared spandex elastic threads with a non-uniform rough surface containing silica nanoparticles and titanium particles through the sol-gel triethoxymethylsilane method. Second, we prepared a rubber/polyester thread with a rough surface by breaking the thread shell with toluene solution, creating knots on the surface of the rubber core. Third, we prepared a polyurethane thread with a bumpy superhydrophobic surface by spraying a tetrafluoroethylene adhesive and silica nanoparticles on the thread. Furthermore, we connected ETTs to an automatic stretching-recovery system to obtain auto-ETTs as another group of harvesters. We obtained auto-i@ETTs by introducing elastic bumps/knots onto the auto-ETT surface. The fog harvesting efficiencies of m@ETTs were approximately 60-120% greater than those of the ETTs. The water harvesting rate of the auto-i@ETT was 2.5 times that of the ETT, with the highest water harvesting rate of auto-i@ETT reaching 3.35 g/h/cm2. Moreover, several novel principles of droplet behavior and thread elasticity were revealed. The elastic elongation level of the ETTs was proportional to their water harvesting efficiency. The stretching-recovery state of the elastic thread did not influence the water contact angle but affected the droplet state on the thread surface. The temporary slack/stick state of adjacent elastic threads on auto-ETTs contributed to droplet convergence and pouring. Overall, this novel approach demonstrates the significant potential of elastic threads in fog harvesting applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luc The Nguyen
- Key Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Zhiqing Bai
- Key Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Jingjing Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Can Gao
- Key Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Bin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Jiansheng Guo
- Key Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
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16
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Rasheed RM, Torres LJ, Rajappan A, Weislogel MM, Preston DJ. Additively manufactured multiplexed inertial coalescence filters. Sep Purif Technol 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.seppur.2022.120966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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17
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Diversifying Water Sources with Atmospheric Water Harvesting to Enhance Water Supply Resilience. SUSTAINABILITY 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/su14137783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
The unequivocal global warming has an explicit impact on the natural water cycle and resultantly leads to an increasing occurrence of extreme weather events which in turn bring challenges and unavoidable destruction to the urban water supply system. As such, diversifying water sources is a key solution to building the resilience of the water supply system. An atmospheric water harvesting can capture water out of the air and provide a point-of-use water source directly. Currently, a series of atmospheric water harvesting have been proposed and developed to provide water sources under various moisture content ranging from 30–80% with a maximum water collection rate of 200,000 L/day. In comparison to conventional water source alternatives, atmospheric water harvesting avoids the construction of storage and distribution grey infrastructure. However, the high price and low water generation rate make this technology unfavorable as a viable alternative to general potable water sources whereas it has advantages compared with bottled water in both cost and environmental impacts. Moreover, atmospheric water harvesting can also provide a particular solution in the agricultural sector in countries with poor irrigation infrastructure but moderate humidity. Overall, atmospheric water harvesting could provide communities and/or cities with an indiscriminate solution to enhance water supply resilience. Further research and efforts are needed to increase the water generation rate and reduce the cost, particularly via leveraging solar energy.
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18
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Karimidastenaei Z, Avellán T, Sadegh M, Kløve B, Haghighi AT. Unconventional water resources: Global opportunities and challenges. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 827:154429. [PMID: 35276181 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2022] [Revised: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/05/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Water is of central importance for reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. With predictions of dire global water scarcity, attention is turning to resources that are considered to be unconventional, and hence called Unconventional Water Resources (UWRs). These are considered as supplementary water resources that need specialized processes to be used as water supply. The literature encompasses a vast number of studies on various UWRs and their usefulness in certain environmental and/or socio-economic contexts. However, a recent, all-encompassing article that brings the collective knowledge on UWRs together is missing. Considering the increasing importance of UWRs in the global push for water security, the current study intends to offer a nuanced understanding of the existing research on UWRs by summarizing the key concepts in the literature. The number of articles published on UWRs have increased significantly over time, particularly in the past ten years. And while most publications were authored from researchers based in the USA or China, other countries such as India, Iran, Australia, and Spain have also featured prominently. Here, twelve general types of UWRs were used to assess their global distribution, showing that climatic conditions are the main driver for the application of certain UWRs. For example, the use of iceberg water obviously necessitates access to icebergs, which are taken largely from arctic regions. Overall, the literature review demonstrated that, even though UWRs provide promising possibilities for overcoming water scarcity, current knowledge is patchy and points towards UWRs being, for the most part, limited in scope and applicability due to geographic, climatic, economic, and political constraints. Future studies focusing on improved documentation and demonstration of the quantitative and socio-economic potential of various UWRs could help in strengthening the case for some, if not all, UWRs as avenues for the sustainable provision of water.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zahra Karimidastenaei
- Water, Energy and Environmental Engineering Research Unit, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 4300, FIN-90014 Oulu, Finland.
| | - Tamara Avellán
- Water, Energy and Environmental Engineering Research Unit, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 4300, FIN-90014 Oulu, Finland
| | - Mojtaba Sadegh
- Department of Civil Engineering, Boise State University, 1910 University Drive, Boise, ID, 83725, United States of America
| | - Bjørn Kløve
- Water, Energy and Environmental Engineering Research Unit, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 4300, FIN-90014 Oulu, Finland
| | - Ali Torabi Haghighi
- Water, Energy and Environmental Engineering Research Unit, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 4300, FIN-90014 Oulu, Finland
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19
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Fan J, Yang Z, Sun W, Wang L, Zhang Q, Liu G. Regioselective Deposition of Hydrophilic Sites to Enhance the Fog Collection Performance of Hydrophilic-Hydrophobic Surface. Colloids Surf A Physicochem Eng Asp 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfa.2022.129574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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20
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Recent Advances in Water Harvesting: A Review of Materials, Devices and Applications. SUSTAINABILITY 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/su14106244] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Water is essential for life. However, water scarcity is becoming one of the most severe issues worldwide in terms of its potential impacts. There are diverse forms of water on earth and water harvesting from them is quite feasible to access more fresh water for drinking, sanitation and irrigation. In this review, we summarize the recent technologies of various water harvesters, based on different forms of water resources, aiming to improve the water harvesting systems. We mainly address three points: forming principles of different water circumstance, working mechanism of typical water harvesters, and the challenges and future research orientations. This systemic review on recent technologies in water harvesting provides insight into the sustainable water resources, water supply, and water collecting systems for the future.
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21
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Lee JH, Lee YJ, Kim HY, Moon MW, Kim SJ. Unclogged Janus Mesh for Fog Harvesting. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2022; 14:21713-21726. [PMID: 35499316 PMCID: PMC9104128 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.2c03419] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Janus membranes with asymmetric surface wettability have been extensively utilized in various fields, including fog harvesting, because of their novel liquid transport properties. However, Janus membranes have an inherent disadvantage in terms of aerodynamic efficiency in harvesting fog because of the clogged water bridges caused by the small pore size. In the present work, we applied Janus wettability to mesh geometry with systematically varying hole sizes. For a clogged mesh with a small hole size, capillary water transport to the mesh back via the wettability gradient in the direction of fog flow helps harvest more fog by enhancing water drainage, similarly to the Janus membrane. The advantage of the capillary water transport extends to a clog-free mesh with larger hole sizes but more preferably to a Janus mesh with a superhydrophilic back, which presents the highest level of fog-harvesting yield because of the fast shedding frequency and short onset time. In contrast, a Janus mesh with a superhydrophobic front, which also has a wettability gradient along the fog flow, produces a lower fog-harvesting performance, particularly at slow fog speeds, because of the dropwise deposition of large water drops that locally disturb fog flow around a protruding water surface. On the other hand, the other type of Janus mesh with a superhydrophilic front is observed to minimize this disadvantage in the local fog flow by virtue of the filmwise deposition. It is also found that some Janus treatments can help protect mesh holes from clogging up by either forming a thin water meniscus or resisting water transport through the mesh holes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joo Hee Lee
- Extreme
Materials Research Center, Korea Institute
of Science and Technology, Seoul 02792, Korea
| | - Young Jin Lee
- Extreme
Materials Research Center, Korea Institute
of Science and Technology, Seoul 02792, Korea
| | - Ho-Young Kim
- Department
of Mechanical Engineering, Seoul National
University, Seoul 08826, Korea
| | - Myoung-Woon Moon
- Extreme
Materials Research Center, Korea Institute
of Science and Technology, Seoul 02792, Korea
| | - Seong Jin Kim
- Extreme
Materials Research Center, Korea Institute
of Science and Technology, Seoul 02792, Korea
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22
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Foday E, Bai B. Mangifera indica Leaf (MIL) as a Novel Material in Atmospheric Water Collection. ACS OMEGA 2022; 7:11809-11817. [PMID: 35449905 PMCID: PMC9016854 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.1c07133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Here, Mangifera indica leaves (MILs) have been used to collect atmospheric water for the first time. This novel material has been viewed by mankind as environmental waste and is mostly discarded or incinerated, causing environmental pollution. By turning waste into wealth, MILs have proven resourceful and can help ameliorate the water crisis, especially in tropical countries. The unprecedented water collection result is enough to describe MILs as an ideal material for atmospheric water collection when compared to other natural plants. Both the physical and chemical surface morphologies were extensively characterized. This comparative study shows that MIL surface droplet termination and hydrophilic nature differ from those of other materials, with the apex playing a key role in the roll-off of the droplet. The surface wettability and its interaction with the droplet are of keen interest in this study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward
Hingha Foday
- Key
Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effects in Arid
Region of the Ministry of Education, Changan
University, Xi’an 710054, Shaanxi, China
- Department
of Environmental Engineering, School of Water and Environment, Changan University, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province 710054, P.R China
- Faculty
of Education, Eastern Technical University
of Sierra Leone, Combema
Road, Kenema City 00232, Sierra Leone
| | - Bo Bai
- Key
Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effects in Arid
Region of the Ministry of Education, Changan
University, Xi’an 710054, Shaanxi, China
- Department
of Environmental Engineering, School of Water and Environment, Changan University, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province 710054, P.R China
- Key
Laboratory of Tibetan Medicine Research, Northwest Institute of Plateau
Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xining 810008, China
- Qinghai
Provincial Key Laboratory of Tibetan Medicine Research, Xining 810001, P.R. China
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23
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Legrand U, Girard-Lauriault PL, Meunier JL, Boudreault R, Tavares JR. Experimental and Theoretical Assessment of Water Sorbent Kinetics. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2022; 38:2651-2659. [PMID: 35175059 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.1c03364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The kinetics of water adsorption in powder sorbent layers are important to design a scaled-up atmospheric water capture device. Herein, the adsorption kinetics of three sorbents, a chromium (Cr)-based metal-organic framework (Cr-MIL-101), a carbon-based material (nanoporous sponges/NPS), and silica gel, have been tested experimentally, using powder layers ranging from ∼0 to 7.5 mm in thickness, in a custom-made calibrated environmental chamber cycling from 5 to 95% RH at 30 °C. A mass and energy transfer model was applied onto the experimental curves to better understand the contribution of key parameters (maximum water uptake, kinetics of single particles, layer open porosity, and particle size distribution). Open porosity (i.e., the void-to-particle ratio in the sorbent layer) shows the highest influence to improve the kinetics. Converting the sorbent kinetics data into a daily yield of captured water demonstrated (i) the existence of an optimal open porosity for each sorbent, (ii) that thinner layers with moderate open porosity performed respectively better than thicker layers with high open porosity, and (iii) that high maximum water uptake and fast single-particle kinetics are not necessarily predictive of high daily water yield.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrich Legrand
- CREPEC, Chemical Engineering Department, Polytechnique Montreal, 2500 Chemin de Polytechnique, Montréal, Quebec H3T 1J4, Canada
| | | | - Jean-Luc Meunier
- Department of Chemical Engineering, McGill University, 3610 University, Montréal, Quebec H3A 0C5, Canada
| | - Richard Boudreault
- Awn Nanotech, Inc., 1985 55th Ave, Suite 100, Dorval, Quebec H9P 1G9, Canada
| | - Jason Robert Tavares
- CREPEC, Chemical Engineering Department, Polytechnique Montreal, 2500 Chemin de Polytechnique, Montréal, Quebec H3T 1J4, Canada
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24
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Wang W, Pan Q, Xing Z, Liu X, Dai Y, Wang R, Ge T. Viability of a practical multicyclic sorption-based water harvester with improved water yield. WATER RESEARCH 2022; 211:118029. [PMID: 35030362 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2021.118029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 12/29/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Sorption-based atmospheric water harvesting (SAWH) has emerged as an attractive way to relieve water scarcity. However, the daily water yield of currently reported SAWH devices remains low to satisfy the rising demand for drinking water. The sorption and desorption kinetics, long-term stability and especially facile scaling-fabrication of adsorbents and scaled-up device implementation have become the bottleneck to such large-scale SAWH application. To overcome these challenges, an air-cooled SAWH device was fabricated to investigate its atmospheric water harvesting (AWH) performance under real island climate and its feasibility of multicyclic operation. Under monocyclic operation, the device demonstrated the superior water productivity as much as 3.9 kg day-1, or 0.39 kgwater kgadsorbent-1 day-1, at 31 °C and 70% RH, with a thermal efficiency of 25.4% (desorption at 94 °C). The SAWH device demonstrated successful water production through 2 adsorption-desorption cycles within one day, with increased thermal efficiency to as high as 32.2% and increased water harvesting performance up to 0.42 kgwater kgadsorbent-1 day-1 by 20-90%. This is the first demonstration in multicyclic SAWH at large scales, holding the promise of large-scale and practical water supply in island areas while opening up new applications such as indoor dehumidification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenwen Wang
- Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Quanwen Pan
- Cryogenic Center, Zhejiang University City College, Hangzhou 310015, China
| | - Zheli Xing
- Cryogenic Center, Zhejiang University City College, Hangzhou 310015, China
| | - Xueying Liu
- National Defense Engineering Institute, Academy of Military Science of PLA, Beijing 100036, China
| | - Yanjun Dai
- Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Ruzhu Wang
- Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Tianshu Ge
- Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
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25
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Yue H, Zeng Q, Huang J, Guo Z, Liu W. Fog collection behavior of bionic surface and large fog collector: A review. Adv Colloid Interface Sci 2022; 300:102583. [PMID: 34954474 DOI: 10.1016/j.cis.2021.102583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2021] [Revised: 12/11/2021] [Accepted: 12/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Water shortages are currently becoming more and more serious due to complicated factors such as the development of the economy, environmental pollution, and climate deterioration. And it is the best solution to the problems faced by people in today's world to investigate the bionic structure of nature and explore effective methods for fog collection. Herein, we've illustrated the bionic structures of the Namib desert beetle, cactus spines, and spider silk, and we imitate and further modify the respective bionic structures, as well as construct multifunctional bionic structures to improve fog collection. In addition, we also expound the fog collection behavior of a large fog collector, and an excellent fog capture effect was achieved through studying the mesh structure, the surface modification of the mesh, and the construction of the fog collector. The advantages and limitations of fog collection by a harp fog collector were also explored. We hope that through this review, relevant researchers can have a deeper understanding of this field and thus promote the development of fog collection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Yue
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for the Green Preparation and Application of Functional Materials, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, People's Republic of China; State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, People's Republic of China
| | - Qinghong Zeng
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for the Green Preparation and Application of Functional Materials, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, People's Republic of China; State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, People's Republic of China
| | - Jinxia Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, People's Republic of China.
| | - Zhiguang Guo
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for the Green Preparation and Application of Functional Materials, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, People's Republic of China; State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, People's Republic of China.
| | - Weimin Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, People's Republic of China
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26
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Electrostatic fog collection mechanism and design of an electrostatic fog collector with nearly perfect fog collection efficiency. Chem Eng Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ces.2021.117034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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27
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Chen H, Ran T, Zhang K, Chen D, Gan Y, Wang Z, Jiang L. Highly Efficient Multiscale Fog Collector Inspired by Sarracenia Trichome Hierarchical Structure. GLOBAL CHALLENGES (HOBOKEN, NJ) 2021; 5:2100087. [PMID: 34938576 PMCID: PMC8671618 DOI: 10.1002/gch2.202100087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2021] [Revised: 08/29/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Fog harvesting through bionic strategies to solve water shortage has drawn considerable attention. Recently, an ultrafast fog harvesting and transport mode was identified in Sarracenia trichome, which is mainly attributed to its superslippery capillary force induced by its unique hierarchical microchannel. However, the underlying effect of hierarchical microchannel-induced ultrafast transport on fog harvesting and the multiscale structural coupling effect on highly efficient fog harvesting are still great challenges. Herein, a bionic Sarracenia trichome (BST) with an on-demand regular hierarchical microchannel is designed using a one-step thermoplastic stretching approach on a glass fiber bundle. The BST is engineered to harbor major channels confined by an inner gear pattern along with junior microchannels that are automatically assembled by the glass fiber monofilaments. The BST shows enhanced capillary condensation and fog harvesting performance, in part due to its coupling effect with a Janus membrane (JM). Hence, a highly efficient multiscale fog collector is developed, in which a gradient high-pressure field is purposely formed to improve by threefold fog harvesting performance compared with a single-scale structure. This easy manufacturing and low-cost fog collector may represent a useful tool for harvesting fog water for production and living and pave the way for further investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huawei Chen
- School of Mechanical Engineering and AutomationBeijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical EngineeringBeihang UniversityBeijing100191China
| | - Tong Ran
- School of Mechanical Engineering and AutomationBeijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical EngineeringBeihang UniversityBeijing100191China
| | - Kaiteng Zhang
- School of Mechanical Engineering and AutomationBeijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical EngineeringBeihang UniversityBeijing100191China
| | - Dengke Chen
- School of Mechanical Engineering and AutomationBeijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical EngineeringBeihang UniversityBeijing100191China
| | - Yang Gan
- School of Mechanical Engineering and AutomationBeijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical EngineeringBeihang UniversityBeijing100191China
| | - Zelinlan Wang
- School of Mechanical Engineering and AutomationBeijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical EngineeringBeihang UniversityBeijing100191China
| | - Lei Jiang
- Laboratory of Bio‐inspired Smart Interface ScienceTechnical Institute of Physics and ChemistryChinese Academy of SciencesBeijing100190China
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28
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Numerical simulation of two-phase droplets on a curved surface using Surface Evolver. Colloids Surf A Physicochem Eng Asp 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfa.2021.127418] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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29
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Aerodynamics-assisted, efficient and scalable kirigami fog collectors. Nat Commun 2021; 12:5484. [PMID: 34531392 PMCID: PMC8445985 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-25764-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
To address the global water shortage crisis, one of the promising solutions is to collect freshwater from the environmental resources such as fog. However, the efficiency of conventional fog collectors remains low due to the viscous drag of fog-laden wind deflected around the collecting surface. Here, we show that the three-dimensional and centimetric kirigami structures can control the wind flow, forming quasi-stable counter-rotating vortices. The vortices regulate the trajectories of incoming fog clusters and eject extensive droplets to the substrate. As the characteristic structural length is increased to the size of vortices, we greatly reduce the dependence of fog collection on the structural delicacy. Together with gravity-directed gathering by the folds, the kirigami fog collector yields a collection efficiency of 16.1% at a low wind speed of 0.8 m/s and is robust against surface characteristics. The collection efficiency is maintained even on a 1 m2 collector in an outdoor setting. Water shortage not only occurs in arid regions, but also in humid area with little precipitation, despite abundant fog. Authors develop robust and scalable 3D centimetric kirigami structures to control wind flow and regulate the trajectories of incoming fog, yielding high fog collection efficiency.
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30
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Kowalski NG, Shi W, Kennedy BS, Boreyko JB. Optimizing Fog Harps. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2021; 13:38826-38834. [PMID: 34342968 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c08995] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
It has recently been demonstrated that harps harvest substantively more fog water than conventional mesh nets, but the optimal design for fog harps remains unknown. Here, we systematically vary key parameters of a scale-model fog harp, the wire material, wire pitch, and wire length, to find the optimal combination. We found stainless steel to not only be the best hydrophilic wire material but also nearly be as effective as Teflon-coated wires. The best choice for the wire pitch was coupled to the wire length, as the smallest pitch collected the most water for short harps but was hampered by tangling for taller harps. Accordingly, we use an elastocapillary wire tangling model to successfully predict the onset of tangling beyond a critical length for any given wire pitch. Combining what we learned, we achieved a water harvesting efficiency of 17% with an optimized stainless-steel harp, over three times higher than that of the current standard of a Raschel mesh. These results suggest that an optimal fog harp should feature high-tension, uncoated wires within a large aspect ratio frame to avoid tangling and promote efficient and reliable fog harvesting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas G Kowalski
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Weiwei Shi
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Brook S Kennedy
- School of Architecture and Design, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Jonathan B Boreyko
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
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31
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Yamada Y, Sakata E, Isobe K, Horibe A. Wettability Difference Induced Out-of-Plane Unidirectional Droplet Transport for Efficient Fog Harvesting. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2021; 13:35079-35085. [PMID: 34258994 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c06432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Securing freshwater resources is a global issue for ensuring sustainable development. Fog harvesting is attracting great attention as a method to collect water without any energy input. Previous reports that were inspired by insects and plants have given insights such as the effectiveness of in-plane wettability and structural differences for droplet transport, which might enhance artificial water harvesting efficiency. However, further efforts to transfer droplets while maintaining performance are needed because droplet motion owing to these effects is limited to the in-plane direction. In this study, we report droplet transport between three-dimensional copper wire structures with nanostructured hydrophobic and superhydrophilic features. This mechanism enhanced the fog harvesting capability by more than 20% compared with the cumulative value of individual wires. In addition, the relationship between the droplet height and spacing of wires affected the performance. Our results show the importance of out-of-plane directional droplet transport from the wire surface assisted by differences in wire wettability, which minimizes limiting factors of fog harvesting including clogging and droplet shedding. Furthermore, the proposed arrangement reduces the overall system width compared with that of a two-dimensional arrangement while maintaining the amount of harvested water. These results provide a promising approach to designing large-scale and highly efficient fog harvesters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yutaka Yamada
- Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama 700-8530, Japan
| | - Eiji Sakata
- Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama 700-8530, Japan
| | - Kazuma Isobe
- Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama 700-8530, Japan
| | - Akihiko Horibe
- Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama 700-8530, Japan
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32
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Ura D, Knapczyk-Korczak J, Szewczyk PK, Sroczyk EA, Busolo T, Marzec MM, Bernasik A, Kar-Narayan S, Stachewicz U. Surface Potential Driven Water Harvesting from Fog. ACS NANO 2021; 15:8848-8859. [PMID: 33900735 PMCID: PMC8158858 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.1c01437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/02/2021] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Access to clean water is a global challenge, and fog collectors are a promising solution. Polycarbonate (PC) fibers have been used in fog collectors but with limited efficiency. In this study, we show that controlling voltage polarity and humidity during the electrospinning of PC fibers improves their surface properties for water collection capability. We experimentally measured the effect of both the surface morphology and the chemistry of PC fiber on their surface potential and mechanical properties in relation to the water collection efficiency from fog. PC fibers produced at high humidity and with negative voltage polarity show a superior water collection rate combined with the highest tensile strength. We proved that electric potential on surface and morphology are crucial, as often designed by nature, for enhancing the water collection capabilities via the single-step production of fibers without any postprocessing needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel
P. Ura
- Faculty
of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
| | - Joanna Knapczyk-Korczak
- Faculty
of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
| | - Piotr K. Szewczyk
- Faculty
of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
| | - Ewa A. Sroczyk
- Faculty
of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
| | - Tommaso Busolo
- Department
of Materials Science and Metallurgy, University
of Cambridge, CB3 0FS Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Mateusz M. Marzec
- Academic
Centre for Materials and Nanotechnology, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
| | - Andrzej Bernasik
- Academic
Centre for Materials and Nanotechnology, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
- Faculty
of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
| | - Sohini Kar-Narayan
- Department
of Materials Science and Metallurgy, University
of Cambridge, CB3 0FS Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Urszula Stachewicz
- Faculty
of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
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33
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Sharifvaghefi S, Kazerooni H. Fog harvesting: combination and comparison of different methods to maximize the collection efficiency. SN APPLIED SCIENCES 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s42452-021-04518-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractFog harvesting is an unconventional source of water that can be used in some regions with water scarcity to overcome water shortages. The most commonly used collectors are meshes which have intrinsic limitations, the most important of which are clogging and aerodynamic deviation of droplets around the wires. Here, three techniques are compared and combined to overcome these limitations, i.e., replacing the mesh with an array of vertical wires, addition of a hydrophobic layer to the wires, and forcing the ionized droplets to move toward the wires by applying an electric field. The combination of these techniques was found to result in higher fog harvesting efficiency compared to each individual method with the highest impact from the addition of the electric field. The combined methods lead to a 60-fold increase in fog harvesting efficiency compared to meshes. The findings showed that when the fog droplets are forced in an electric field toward the wires, the shading coefficient for collectors can be increased to 1 from 0.55 (maximum for collectors without the electric field) without affecting the fog harvesting efficiency, allowing for lower construction cost of the collectors. Addition of the electric field showed two distinctive promotional effects. First, increasing the aerodynamic efficiency and second, reducing the size of droplets sliding down the wires by disturbing the three-phase contact line and reducing the contact angle hysteresis and the pinning force. Energy analysis shows that this technique can be 100 times more energy efficient compared to the conventional atmospheric water generators.
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34
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Sharma V, Ali-Löytty H, Koivikko A, Yiannacou K, Lahtonen K, Sariola V. Copper Oxide Microtufts on Natural Fractals for Efficient Water Harvesting. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2021; 37:3370-3381. [PMID: 33705155 PMCID: PMC8043393 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.0c03497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2020] [Revised: 02/26/2021] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Hierarchical surfaces that aid in the droplet nucleation, growth, and removal is highly desirable for fog and moisture harvesting applications. Taking inspiration from the unique architecture of leaf skeletons, we present a multiscale surface capable of rapidly nucleating, growing, and directional transport of the water droplets. Copper oxide microtufts were fabricated onto the Ficus religiosa leaf skeletons via electroplating and chemical oxidation techniques. The fabricated surfaces with microtufts had high wettability and very good fog harvesting ability. CuO surfaces tend to become hydrophobic over time because of the adsorption of the airborne species. The surfaces were efficient in fog harvesting even when the hydrophobic coating is present. The overall water collection efficiencies were determined, and the role of the microtufts, fractal structures, and the orientation of leaf veins was investigated. Compared to the planar control surfaces, the noncoated and hydrophobic layer-coated copper oxide microtufts on the leaf skeletons displayed a significant increase in the fog harvesting efficiency. For superhydrophilic skeleton surfaces, the water collection rate was also observed to slightly vary with the vein orientation. The CuO microtufts along with high surface area fractals allowed an effective and sustainable way to capture and transport water. The study is expected to provide valuable insights into the design and fabrication of sustainable and efficient fog harvesting systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vipul Sharma
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology,
Tampere University, Korkeakoulunkatu 3, 33720 Tampere,
Finland
| | - Harri Ali-Löytty
- Surface Science Group, Photonics Laboratory,
Tampere University, P.O. Box 692, FI-33014 Tampere,
Finland
| | - Anastasia Koivikko
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology,
Tampere University, Korkeakoulunkatu 3, 33720 Tampere,
Finland
| | - Kyriacos Yiannacou
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology,
Tampere University, Korkeakoulunkatu 3, 33720 Tampere,
Finland
| | - Kimmo Lahtonen
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences,
Tampere University, P.O. Box 692, 33014 Tampere,
Finland
| | - Veikko Sariola
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology,
Tampere University, Korkeakoulunkatu 3, 33720 Tampere,
Finland
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35
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Nguyen LT, Bai Z, Zhu J, Gao C, Liu X, Wagaye BT, Li J, Zhang B, Guo J. Three-Dimensional Multilayer Vertical Filament Meshes for Enhancing Efficiency in Fog Water Harvesting. ACS OMEGA 2021; 6:3910-3920. [PMID: 33585770 PMCID: PMC7876836 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.0c05776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2020] [Accepted: 01/15/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Novel types of vertical filament mesh (VFM) fog harvesters, 3D VFM fog harvesters, and multilayer 3D VFM fog harvesters were developed by mimicking the water-harvesting nature of desert beetles and the spider silks from fog. Four different types of polymer filaments with different hydrophilic-hydrophobic properties were used. The polymer filaments were modified with the polyurethane-sodium alginate (PU-SA) mixture solution, and a simple spraying method was used to form alternating 3D PU-SA microbumps. Polymer VFMs exhibited a higher fog-harvesting efficiency than the vertical metal meshes. Moreover, the hydrophobic VFM was more efficient in fog harvesting than the hydrophilic VFM. Notably, the fog-harvesting efficiency of all VFMs increased by 30-80% after spraying with the mixed PU-SA solution to form a 3D geometric surface structure (3D PU-SA microbumps), which mimicked the desert beetle back surface. This modification caused the fog-harvesting efficiency of PTFE 3D VFM to be thrice higher than that of Fe VFM. This increase was attributed to the improved synergistic effects of fog capturing, droplet growing, and droplet shedding. The multilayer VFMs were more efficient in fog harvesting than the single-layer VFMs because of a larger droplet capture area. The fog-harvesting efficiency of two-layer and four-layer polymer VFMs was approximately 35% and about 45% higher than that of the single-layer polymer VFMs, respectively. The four-layer PTFE 3D VFM with the type B PU-SA bump surface (bump/PU-SA) had the highest efficiency of 287.6 mL/m2/h. Besides the high fog-harvesting efficiency, the proposed polymer VFMs are highly stable, cost-effective, rust-free, and easy to install in practical applications. These advantages are ascribed to the elasticity of the polymer filaments. This work provides new ideas and methods for developing high-performance fog harvesters such as the 3D VFM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luc The Nguyen
- Key
Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education,
College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
- Faculty
of Garment Technology and Fashion Design, Hung Yen University of Technology and Education, Hai Duong 170000, Vietnam
| | - Zhiqing Bai
- Key
Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education,
College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Jingjing Zhu
- Key
Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education,
College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Can Gao
- Key
Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education,
College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Xiaojing Liu
- Key
Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education,
College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Bewuket T. Wagaye
- Key
Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education,
College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Jiecong Li
- Key
Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education,
College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Bin Zhang
- Key
Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education,
College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
| | - Jiansheng Guo
- Key
Laboratory of Textile Science and Technology, Ministry of Education,
College of Textiles, Donghua University, 2999 North Remin Road, Shanghai 201620, China
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36
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Park J, Lee C, Lee S, Cho H, Moon MW, Kim SJ. Clogged water bridges for fog harvesting. SOFT MATTER 2021; 17:136-144. [PMID: 33155611 DOI: 10.1039/d0sm01133a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Capillary water bridges clogged in the holes of mesh-type fog harvesters have previously been considered only as a drawback because they decrease fog-harvesting yield by hindering airflow in front of the clogged mesh in the usual wind conditions. In this study, we show that the role of a clogged water bridge may not be entirely negative and can contribute to increased fog harvesting by increasing the effective shade coefficient in a special condition with high fog inertia. As the fog speed close to the mesh or the plate increases, clogged mesh as well as the impermeable solid plate are found to produce high fog-harvesting efficiency owing to the high inertia of fog particles that impact the blocked wall. For fast fog speeds (∼4 m s-1) near the mesh, our results show that the fog-harvesting efficiency is proportional to the effective shade coefficient because fog flow circumventing the mesh is limited owing to high fog inertia. We analyzed the clogging effect on fog-harvesting performance by distinguishing between self-clogging and non-self-clogging patterns based on the water bridge stability clogged in mesh holes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jihye Park
- Materials and Life Science Research Division, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul, 02792, Republic of Korea.
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37
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Zhuang S, Qi H, Wang X, Li X, Liu K, Liu J, Zhang H. Advances in Solar-Driven Hygroscopic Water Harvesting. GLOBAL CHALLENGES (HOBOKEN, NJ) 2021; 5:2000085. [PMID: 33437528 PMCID: PMC7788583 DOI: 10.1002/gch2.202000085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2020] [Revised: 10/29/2020] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
Water scarcity is one of the greatest global challenges at this time. Significant efforts have been made to harvest water from the air, due to widely available water sources present in the atmosphere. Particularly, solar-driven hygroscopic water harvesting based on the adsorption-desorption process has gained tremendous attention because of the abundance of solar energy in combination with substantial improvements in conversion efficiency enabled by advanced sorbents, improved photothermal materials, interfacial heating system designs, and thermal management in recent years. Here, recent developments in atmospheric water harvesting are discussed, with a focus on solar-driven hygroscopic water harvesting. The diverse structural designs and engineering strategies that are being used to improve the rate of the water production, including the design principles for sorbents with high adsorption capacity, high-efficiency light-to-heat conversion, optimization of thermal management, vapor condensation, and water collection, are also explored. The current challenges and future research opportunities are also discussed, providing a roadmap for the future development of solar-driven hygroscopic water harvesting technology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shendong Zhuang
- SZU‐NUS Collaborative Innovation Center for Optoelectronic Science & TechnologyInternational Collaborative Laboratory of 2D Materials for Optoelectronics Science and Technology of Ministry of EducationInstitute of Microscale OptoelectronicsShenzhen UniversityShenzhen518060China
| | - Heshan Qi
- National Laboratory of Solid State MicrostructuresCollege of Engineering and Applied SciencesJiangsu Key Laboratory of Artificial Functional MaterialsNanjing UniversityNanjing210093China
| | - Xueyang Wang
- National Laboratory of Solid State MicrostructuresCollege of Engineering and Applied SciencesJiangsu Key Laboratory of Artificial Functional MaterialsNanjing UniversityNanjing210093China
| | - Xiuqiang Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering and Material ScienceDuke UniversityDurhamNC27708USA
| | - Kai Liu
- Institute of Advanced TechnologyWestlake Institute for Advanced StudyKey Laboratory of Coastal Environment and Resources Research of Zhejiang ProvinceSchool of EngineeringWestlake UniversityHangzhou310024China
| | - Jun Liu
- SZU‐NUS Collaborative Innovation Center for Optoelectronic Science & TechnologyInternational Collaborative Laboratory of 2D Materials for Optoelectronics Science and Technology of Ministry of EducationInstitute of Microscale OptoelectronicsShenzhen UniversityShenzhen518060China
| | - Han Zhang
- SZU‐NUS Collaborative Innovation Center for Optoelectronic Science & TechnologyInternational Collaborative Laboratory of 2D Materials for Optoelectronics Science and Technology of Ministry of EducationInstitute of Microscale OptoelectronicsShenzhen UniversityShenzhen518060China
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38
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Li J, Li W, Han X, Wang L. Sandwiched nets for efficient direction-independent fog collection. J Colloid Interface Sci 2021; 581:545-551. [PMID: 32805671 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2020.07.153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2020] [Revised: 07/31/2020] [Accepted: 07/31/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
As an effective strategy to alleviate the global water shortage, the Janus membrane has been widely developed to harvest the fog droplets because of its advantages of timely drainage and directional droplet delivery. However, Janus membrane is extremely susceptible to the direction of the fog stream, which changes dynamically in nature. In this work, we develop a three-layer sandwiched fog collector consisting of a hydrophilic inner mesh and two superhydrophobic outer meshes, which always serves as a Janus collector to enable a stable and efficient fog collection independent of the direction of the mist stream. We also demonstrate the superiority of such sandwiched fog collector in terms of the droplet shedding size and onset time, as well as the directional droplet delivery. The droplet coalescence effectively facilitates the shedding of the attached droplets on the outer superhydrophobic mesh, and the directional delivery of the clogged droplets from the superhydrophobic to hydrophilic layer further dries the mesh surface for the successive interception of fog droplets. These mechanisms can work together seamlessly, which benefits the productive collection of the droplet of different sizes on the three-layer sandwiched fog collector.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaqian Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong; HKU-Zhejiang Institute of Research and Innovation (HKU-ZIRI), Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311300, China
| | - Wei Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong; HKU-Zhejiang Institute of Research and Innovation (HKU-ZIRI), Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311300, China
| | - Xing Han
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong; HKU-Zhejiang Institute of Research and Innovation (HKU-ZIRI), Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311300, China
| | - Liqiu Wang
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong; HKU-Zhejiang Institute of Research and Innovation (HKU-ZIRI), Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311300, China.
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39
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Shi W, De Koninck LH, Hart BJ, Kowalski NG, Fugaro AP, van der Sloot TW, Ott RS, Kennedy BS, Boreyko JB. Harps under Heavy Fog Conditions: Superior to Meshes but Prone to Tangling. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2020; 12:48124-48132. [PMID: 33021369 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.0c12329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
In arid yet foggy regions, fog harvesting is emerging as a promising approach to combat water scarcity. The mesh netting used by current fog harvesters suffers from inefficient drainage, which severely constrains the water collection efficiency. Recently, it was demonstrated that fog harps can significantly enhance water harvesting as the vertical wire array does not obstruct the drainage pathway. However, fabrication limitations resulted in a very low shade coefficient of 18% for the initial fog harp prototype and the field testing was geographically confined to light fog conditions. Here, we use wire-electrical discharge machining (wire-EDM) to machine ultrafine comb arrays; winding the harp wire along a comb-embedded reinforced frame enabled a shade coefficient of 50%. To field test under heavy fog conditions, we placed the harvesters on a closed-circuit test road and inundated them with fog produced by an array of overlying fog towers. On average, the fog harps collected about three times more water than the mesh netting. During fog harvesting, the harp wires were observed to tangle together due to the surface tension of water. We developed a rational model to predict the extent of the tangling problem for any given fog harp design. By designing next-generation fog harps to be anti-tangling, we expect that even larger performance multipliers will be possible compared to the current mesh harvesters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weiwei Shi
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Lance H De Koninck
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Brandon J Hart
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Nicholas G Kowalski
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Andrew P Fugaro
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Thomas W van der Sloot
- School of Architecture and Design, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Robin S Ott
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Brook S Kennedy
- School of Architecture and Design, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
| | - Jonathan B Boreyko
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States
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40
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Abstract
Various creatures, such as spider silk and cacti, have harnessed their surface structures to collect fog for survival. These surfaces typically stay dry and have a large contact hysteresis enabling them to move a condensed water droplet, resulting in an intermittent transport state and a relatively reduced speed. In contrast to these creatures, here we demonstrate that Nepenthes alata offers a remarkably integrated system on its peristome surface to harvest water continuously in a humid environment. Multicurvature structures are equipped on the peristome to collect and transport water continuously in three steps: nucleation of droplets on the ratchet teeth, self-pumping of water collection that steadily increases by the concavity, and transport of the acquired water to overflow the whole arch channel of the peristome. The water-wetted peristome surface can further enhance the water transport speed by ∼300 times. The biomimetic design expands the application fields in water and organic fogs gathering to the evaporation tower, laboratory, kitchen, and chemical industry.
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41
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Zhou H, Jing X, Guo Z. Optimal Design of a Fog Collector: Unidirectional Water Transport on a System Integrated by Conical Copper Needles with Gradient Wettability and Hydrophilic Slippery Rough Surfaces. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2020; 36:6801-6810. [PMID: 32429666 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.0c00987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Inspired by a cactus spine and pitcher plant slippery surface, a strategy is proposed to design a superhydrophobic-hydrophilic conical copper needle (SHB-HL CCN) and hydrophilic slippery rough surface (SRS) integrative system. In this strategy, the SHB-HL CCN was inserted vertically on the hydrophilic SRS, and such a hydrophilic SRS + SHB-HL CCN system exhibited a high-efficiency cycle in droplet capture-coalescence (supply)-transport during the fog collection process. Even with a single SHB-HL CCN or hydrophilic SRS, the water collection rate is much higher than that of the usual materials (original copper needle, superhydrophobic substrate, hydrophobic SRS, etc.). It is demonstrated that a newly enhanced fog harvesting mechanism and higher fog collection rate can be realized due to the synergy between the Laplace pressure difference from the conical needle, wettability force of wettability difference in the conical copper needles, and released surface energy in droplet coalescence in addition to the attracting force from water bridges formed between needles and substrate. Compared with a single SHB-HL CCN and hydrophilic SRS, the water collection rate of the hydrophilic SRS + SHB-HL CCN system increased by approximately 328 and 152%, respectively. This fog collector provides direction to design water harvesting systems, which has important promotion significance for water collection application engineering in industry, aerospace, and other fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Zhou
- Hubei Collaborative Innovation Centre for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for the Green Preparation and Application of Functional Materials, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, People's Republic of China
- State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, People's Republic of China
| | - Xueshan Jing
- Hubei Collaborative Innovation Centre for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for the Green Preparation and Application of Functional Materials, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, People's Republic of China
- State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhiguang Guo
- Hubei Collaborative Innovation Centre for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for the Green Preparation and Application of Functional Materials, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, People's Republic of China
- State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, People's Republic of China
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42
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Azeem M, Guérin A, Dumais T, Caminos L, Goldstein RE, Pesci AI, de Dios Rivera J, Torres MJ, Wiener J, Campos JL, Dumais J. Optimal Design of Multilayer Fog Collectors. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2020; 12:7736-7743. [PMID: 31945290 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.9b19727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The growing concerns over desertification have spurred research into technologies aimed at acquiring water from nontraditional sources such as dew, fog, and water vapor. Some of the most promising developments have focused on improving designs to collect water from fog. However, the absence of a shared framework to predict, measure, and compare the water collection efficiencies of new prototypes is becoming a major obstacle to progress in the field. We address this problem by providing a general theory to design efficient fog collectors as well as a concrete experimental protocol to furnish our theory with all the necessary parameters to quantify the effective water collection efficiency. We show in particular that multilayer collectors are required for high fog collection efficiency and that all efficient designs are found within a narrow range of mesh porosity. We support our conclusions with measurements on simple multilayer harp collectors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Musaddaq Azeem
- Faculty of Textile Engineering, Department of Material Engineering , Technical University of Liberec , Studentská 1402/2 , 461 17 Liberec 1 , Czech Republic
| | - Adrien Guérin
- Faculty of Engineering and Sciences , Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez , Av. Padre Hurtado 750 , Viña del Mar 2562340 , Chile
| | - Thomas Dumais
- Faculty of Engineering and Sciences , Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez , Av. Padre Hurtado 750 , Viña del Mar 2562340 , Chile
| | - Luis Caminos
- Faculty of Engineering and Sciences , Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez , Av. Padre Hurtado 750 , Viña del Mar 2562340 , Chile
| | - Raymond E Goldstein
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics , University of Cambridge , Wilberforce Road , Cambridge CB3 0WA , U.K
| | - Adriana I Pesci
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics , University of Cambridge , Wilberforce Road , Cambridge CB3 0WA , U.K
| | - Juan de Dios Rivera
- Departamento de Ingenierı́a Mecánica y Metalúrgica , Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile , Av. Vicuña Mackenna 4860 , Macul 7820436 , Santiago , Chile
| | - María Josefina Torres
- Escuela de Ingenierı́a Mecánica , Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaı́so , Av. Los Carrera , Quilpué 2430000 , Chile
| | - Jakub Wiener
- Faculty of Textile Engineering, Department of Material Engineering , Technical University of Liberec , Studentská 1402/2 , 461 17 Liberec 1 , Czech Republic
| | - José Luis Campos
- Faculty of Engineering and Sciences , Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez , Av. Padre Hurtado 750 , Viña del Mar 2562340 , Chile
| | - Jacques Dumais
- Faculty of Engineering and Sciences , Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez , Av. Padre Hurtado 750 , Viña del Mar 2562340 , Chile
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43
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Li X, Liu Y, Zhou H, Gao C, Li D, Hou Y, Zheng Y. Fog Collection on a Bio-inspired Topological Alloy Net with Micro-/Nanostructures. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2020; 12:5065-5072. [PMID: 31880907 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.9b19756] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Because of the scarcity of freshwater resources, fog collection as one of the effective methods to solve this issue has attracted widespread concern. Inspired by several natural creatures with the capability to collect water from fog, the bio-inspired water-harvesting materials have aroused considerable attention and been widely developed. Inspired by the directional water droplets transportation to the apex on both shorebirds beaks and wheat awns, the bio-inspired topological alloy net with a V-shaped asymmetric geometry in its mesh was designed for fog collecting. Then, micro-/nano-hierarchical structures were modified on the surface of the netting wire via the cathodic electrodeposition method. Thus, the bio-inspired topological alloy net with micro/nanostructures was fabricated successfully. Through the integration of topological geometry and surface microstructure, not only the water-collection rate is improved by efficient drainage along the designated pathways, but also the issue of mesh clogging is resolved. In addition, a theoretical model was constructed to reveal the mechanism, especially the resultant force arising from the V-shaped structure. This work provides insight into the development of novel fog-collecting materials, which has potential applications in other fields, such as liquid transportation, microfluidics, and interface science.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Li
- Key Laboratory of Bioinspired Smart Interfacial Science and Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering , Beihang University (BUAA) , Beijing 100191 , P. R. China
| | - Yufang Liu
- Key Laboratory of Bioinspired Smart Interfacial Science and Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering , Beihang University (BUAA) , Beijing 100191 , P. R. China
| | - Hu Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Bioinspired Smart Interfacial Science and Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering , Beihang University (BUAA) , Beijing 100191 , P. R. China
| | - Chunlei Gao
- Key Laboratory of Bioinspired Smart Interfacial Science and Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering , Beihang University (BUAA) , Beijing 100191 , P. R. China
| | - Diansen Li
- Key Laboratory of Bioinspired Smart Interfacial Science and Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering , Beihang University (BUAA) , Beijing 100191 , P. R. China
| | - Yongping Hou
- Key Laboratory of Bioinspired Smart Interfacial Science and Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering , Beihang University (BUAA) , Beijing 100191 , P. R. China
| | - Yongmei Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Bioinspired Smart Interfacial Science and Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering , Beihang University (BUAA) , Beijing 100191 , P. R. China
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44
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Knapczyk-Korczak J, Ura DP, Gajek M, Marzec MM, Berent K, Bernasik A, Chiverton JP, Stachewicz U. Fiber-Based Composite Meshes with Controlled Mechanical and Wetting Properties for Water Harvesting. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2020; 12:1665-1676. [PMID: 31820919 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.9b19839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Water is the basis of life in the world. Unfortunately, resources are shrinking at an alarming rate. The lack of access to water is still the biggest problem in the modern world. The key to solving it is to find new unconventional ways to obtain water from alternative sources. Fog collectors are becoming an increasingly important way of water harvesting as there are places in the world where fog is the only source of water. Our aim is to apply electrospun fiber technology, due to its high surface area, to increase fog collection efficiency. Therefore, composites consisting of hydrophobic and hydrophilic fibers were successfully fabricated using a two-nozzle electrospinning setup. This design enables the realization of optimal meshes for harvesting water from fog. In our studies we focused on combining hydrophobic polystyrene (PS) and hydrophilic polyamide 6 (PA6), surface properties in the produced meshes, without any chemical modifications, on the basis of new hierarchical composites for collecting water. This combination of hydrophobic and hydrophilic materials causes water to condense on the hydrophobic microfibers and to run down on the hydrophilic nanofibers. By adjusting the fraction of PA6 nanofibers, we were able to tune the mechanical properties of PS meshes and importantly increase the efficiency in collecting water. We combined a few characterization methods together with novel image processing protocols for the analysis of fiber fractions in the constructed meshes. The obtained results show a new single-step method to produce meshes with enhanced mechanical properties and water collecting abilities that can be applied in existing fog water collectors. This is a new promising design for fog collectors with nano- and macrofibers which are able to efficiently harvest water, showing great application in comparison to commercially available standard meshes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Knapczyk-Korczak
- Faculty of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, International Centre of Electron Microscopy for Materials Science , AGH University of Science and Technology , 30-059 Krakow , Poland
| | - Daniel P Ura
- Faculty of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, International Centre of Electron Microscopy for Materials Science , AGH University of Science and Technology , 30-059 Krakow , Poland
| | - Marcin Gajek
- Faculty of Materials Science and Ceramics , AGH University of Science and Technology , 30-059 Krakow , Poland
| | - Mateusz M Marzec
- Academic Centre for Materials and Nanotechnology , AGH University of Science and Technology , 30-059 Krakow , Poland
| | - Katarzyna Berent
- Academic Centre for Materials and Nanotechnology , AGH University of Science and Technology , 30-059 Krakow , Poland
| | - Andrzej Bernasik
- Academic Centre for Materials and Nanotechnology , AGH University of Science and Technology , 30-059 Krakow , Poland
- Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science , AGH University of Science and Technology , 30-059 Krakow , Poland
| | - John P Chiverton
- School of Energy and Electronic Engineering , University of Portsmouth , Portsmouth PO1 3DJ , United Kingdom
| | - Urszula Stachewicz
- Faculty of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, International Centre of Electron Microscopy for Materials Science , AGH University of Science and Technology , 30-059 Krakow , Poland
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45
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Easy-to-use correlations to estimate droplet mobility on hydrophobic fibrous coatings. Colloids Surf A Physicochem Eng Asp 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfa.2019.123867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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46
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Sharma V, Yiannacou K, Karjalainen M, Lahtonen K, Valden M, Sariola V. Large-scale efficient water harvesting using bioinspired micro-patterned copper oxide nanoneedle surfaces and guided droplet transport. NANOSCALE ADVANCES 2019; 1:4025-4040. [PMID: 36132092 PMCID: PMC9418429 DOI: 10.1039/c9na00405j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2019] [Accepted: 09/03/2019] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
As the Earth's atmosphere contains an abundant amount of water as vapors, a device which can capture a fraction of this water could be a cost-effective and practical way of solving the water crisis. There are many biological surfaces found in nature which display unique wettability due to the presence of hierarchical micro-nanostructures and play a major role in water deposition. Inspired by these biological microstructures, we present a large scale, facile and cost-effective method to fabricate water-harvesting functional surfaces consisting of high-density copper oxide nanoneedles. A controlled chemical oxidation approach on copper surfaces was employed to fabricate nanoneedles with controlled morphology, assisted by bisulfate ion adsorption on the surface. The fabricated surfaces with nanoneedles displayed high wettability and excellent fog harvesting capability. Furthermore, when the fabricated nanoneedles were subjected to hydrophobic coating, these were able to rapidly generate and shed coalesced droplets leading to further increase in fog harvesting efficiency. Overall, ∼99% and ∼150% increase in fog harvesting efficiency was achieved with non-coated and hydrophobic layer coated copper oxide nanoneedle surfaces respectively when compared to the control surfaces. As the transport of the harvested water is very important in any fog collection system, hydrophilic channels inspired by leaf veins were made on the surfaces via a milling technique which allowed an effective and sustainable way to transport the captured water and further enhanced the water collection efficiency by ∼9%. The system presented in this study can provide valuable insights towards the design and fabrication of fog harvesting systems, adaptable to arid or semi-arid environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vipul Sharma
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University Korkeakoulunkatu 3 33720 Tampere Finland
| | - Kyriacos Yiannacou
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University Korkeakoulunkatu 3 33720 Tampere Finland
| | - Markus Karjalainen
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University Korkeakoulunkatu 3 33720 Tampere Finland
| | - Kimmo Lahtonen
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Tampere University P.O. Box 692 FI-33014 Finland
| | - Mika Valden
- Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Tampere University P.O. Box 692 FI-33014 Finland
| | - Veikko Sariola
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University Korkeakoulunkatu 3 33720 Tampere Finland
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Abstract
Capturing droplets from a stream with a fibrous material is a well-known and well-used process, from coalescence filters to fog harvesting. In this paper, we report experimental measurements of collection efficiency with a model system consisting in an array of vertical nylon fibers. In particular, we report precise measurements over a large range of parameters, and identify the key role played by the drop distribution on the overall collection efficiency. Due to a growth and coalescence process, this drop distribution evolves toward a regular pattern of uniformly distributed drops, and a balance between capillarity and gravity sets an average drop size. Accounting for these effects in a simple inertial impaction model allows predictive and quantitative comparisons with experiments. Drop growth can be suppressed by forming long continuous liquid columns between close fibers; incoming droplets immediately coalesce with these wet columns, and the capture efficiency is increased. In addition, we extend our model to take into account the interactions between fibers.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Labbé
- LadHyX, Department of Mechanics, CNRS, École polytechnique, 91128 Palaiseau, France.
| | - C Duprat
- LadHyX, Department of Mechanics, CNRS, École polytechnique, 91128 Palaiseau, France.
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48
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Aziz H, Tafreshi HV. Competing forces on a liquid bridge between parallel and orthogonal dissimilar fibers. SOFT MATTER 2019; 15:6967-6977. [PMID: 31432863 DOI: 10.1039/c9sm00489k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
This paper presents a detailed investigation on the mechanical forces acting on a liquid bridge between dissimilar fibers in parallel and orthogonal configurations. These forces were measured experimentally, using a sensitive scale, and were also predicted computationally, via numerical simulation. Special attention was paid to the fiber-fiber spacing at which the liquid bridge detached from the fibers, and to how a transition from an equilibrium liquid bridge to a spontaneously (time-dependent) detaching bridge took place. It was found that, while varying the spacing between the fibers affects a liquid bridge differently for fibers with different relative angles with respect to one another, the spacing at which the bridge detaches from the fibers is independent of the fibers' relative angle. This paper also formulates the contribution of the geometrical and wetting properties of the fibers competing for the droplet that results from a liquid bridge detachment, and presents a mathematical expression to predict the fate of that droplet.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hossain Aziz
- Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia 23284-3015, USA.
| | - Hooman V Tafreshi
- Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia 23284-3015, USA.
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49
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Wen C, Guo H, Bai H, Xu T, Liu M, Yang J, Zhu Y, Zhao W, Zhang J, Cao M, Zhang L. Beetle-Inspired Hierarchical Antibacterial Interface for Reliable Fog Harvesting. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2019; 11:34330-34337. [PMID: 31429271 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.9b11862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The microdroplets in fog flow have been considered as an important resource for supplying fresh drinking water. Most of the reported works of fog collection focus on the water-collecting ability rather than the environmental reliability of selected materials. In this work, a beetle-inspired hierarchical fog-collecting interface based on the antibacterial needle-array (ABN) and hydrophilic/hydrophobic cooperative structure is displayed. The hydrophilic ABN is coated with zwitterionic carboxybetaine (CB) brushes that endow the fog collector with a long-term cleaning in harsh environment. Due to its strong affinity to water molecules, the tilted needles with a CB coating can facilitate the capture of fog and the rapid delivery of condensed water driven by gravity. After being transported to the connected hydrophobic sheet, the collected droplets can be rapidly detached and stored in the container, achieving a high fog-harvesting rate. Furthermore, CB-patterned channels are integrated on the hydrophobic sheet for the pathway-controlled water delivery. The CB coating is able to efficiently resist bacterial adhesion and contamination during fog harvesting, protecting the device from microbiological corrosion. The current design provides a promising method to incorporate antibacterial ability into fog collectors, which offer great opportunity to develop water harvesters for real-world applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiyu Wen
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Frontier Science Center for Synthetic Biology and Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (MOE) , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300350 , China
- Qingdao Institute for Marine Technology , Tianjin University , Qingdao 266235 , China
| | - Hongshuang Guo
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Frontier Science Center for Synthetic Biology and Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (MOE) , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300350 , China
- Qingdao Institute for Marine Technology , Tianjin University , Qingdao 266235 , China
| | - Haoyu Bai
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072 , China
| | - Tong Xu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology , Inner Mongolia University of Technology , Huhhot 010051 , China
| | - Min Liu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Frontier Science Center for Synthetic Biology and Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (MOE) , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300350 , China
- Qingdao Institute for Marine Technology , Tianjin University , Qingdao 266235 , China
| | - Jing Yang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Frontier Science Center for Synthetic Biology and Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (MOE) , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300350 , China
- Qingdao Institute for Marine Technology , Tianjin University , Qingdao 266235 , China
| | - Yingnan Zhu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Frontier Science Center for Synthetic Biology and Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (MOE) , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300350 , China
- Qingdao Institute for Marine Technology , Tianjin University , Qingdao 266235 , China
| | - Weiqiang Zhao
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Frontier Science Center for Synthetic Biology and Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (MOE) , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300350 , China
- Qingdao Institute for Marine Technology , Tianjin University , Qingdao 266235 , China
| | - Jiamin Zhang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Frontier Science Center for Synthetic Biology and Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (MOE) , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300350 , China
- Qingdao Institute for Marine Technology , Tianjin University , Qingdao 266235 , China
| | - Moyuan Cao
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072 , China
| | - Lei Zhang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Frontier Science Center for Synthetic Biology and Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (MOE) , Tianjin University , Tianjin 300350 , China
- Qingdao Institute for Marine Technology , Tianjin University , Qingdao 266235 , China
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50
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Jiang Y, Machado C, Savarirayan S, Patankar NA, Park KC. Onset time of fog collection. SOFT MATTER 2019; 15:6779-6783. [PMID: 31342045 DOI: 10.1039/c9sm01105f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Fog collection is a promising solution to the worldwide water scarcity problem and is also of vital importance to industrial processes, such as recapturing water in cooling towers and mist elimination. To date, numerous studies have investigated the fog collection rate, a parameter that denotes the average performance over a long period of time. However, the initial period (referred to as onset time) between the start of the fog-laden flow and the actual collection of the captured liquid (a delay in time caused by droplet growth to a critical weight that exceeds droplet-surface retention force) has not been systematically understood. A longer onset time may result in a more serious clogging issue that deteriorates the collection rate and, hence, understanding this phenomenon is important. Here, we study how the onset time is determined by the capture and transport of fog using individual, vertical wires with various surface wettabilities and diameters, under different wind speeds. This approach allows us to derive a scaling law that correlates the onset time with the fog capture process and droplet-surface retention force, governed by aerodynamics and interfacial phenomena, respectively. In particular, the onset time decreases with an increasing rate of fog capture or a decreasing droplet-surface retention force. This study introduces an important aspect in the evaluation of fog collection and provides insights for the optimal design of fog collectors and mist eliminators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Youhua Jiang
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.
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