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| MOF-303 |
While recent technological developments have enabled the desalination of sea water to create "clean" water, the process is expensive and limited to coastal areas. Some scientists have turned to Atmospheric Water Harvesting, instead, using devices such as nets to collect dew or "harvest" water from fog.
More recently, however, an AI-enhanced system using a water-absorbing compound called MOF-303 could draw water from the air, even in arid regions. The inventor of the tech, Atoco, has shown off an eye-catching demonstration where a device was able to draw water from the air in America’s arid, sun-baked Death Valley.
"Even in arid low-humidity regions, there is moisture in the air that we could use for drinking water or irrigation purposes, but harvesting it cost-efficiently requires advanced materials," Dr Samer Taha, CEO at Atoco, tells Yahoo News.
How does it work?
MOF-303 (the 'MOF' stands for metal-organic framework) is a material that was designed with the help of AI, and is engineered at the nanoscale with a highly complex atomic structure which helps to "trap" water molecules.
It’s an "adsorbent" (as opposed to ‘absorbent’) which means it traps water on its surface and has been designed to have a huge surface within a tiny area. Dr Taha explains: "Known as reticular materials, these substances have surface areas the size of football fields within a single gram of material, maximising their ability to trap and release water molecules. It makes the kind of water harvesting we see in Star Wars or Dune a reality, unlocking access to water in areas suffering from drought or water scarcity."
Well, I certainly wouldn't mind if they extracted some water from our air in Slower Maryland's muggy summer.
The Wombat has Early Morning Rule 5 Monday: Smokin’ Blonde ready and awaiting your attention at The Other McCain.
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