Adsorption-Based Atmospheric Water Harvesting: Impact of Material and Component Properties on System-Level...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Chemical Engineering
• Environmental Science

Background:

• Atmospheric water harvesting (AWH) provides decentralized water solutions for scarce regions.
• Current AWH methods include fog harvesting, dewing, and sorbent-based approaches.
• Sorbent-based AWH is promising for wider applicability in water-scarce areas.

Purpose of the Study:

• To differentiate AWH methods based on climatic conditions (temperature and relative humidity).
• To emphasize the critical role of heat and mass transport properties in sorbent material performance for AWH.
• To present a modeling framework for optimizing solar thermal-driven AWH systems.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of geographic/climatic operating regimes for different AWH techniques.
• Focus on sorbent materials, evaluating properties beyond equilibrium uptake.
• Development and application of a modeling framework to predict AWH system performance based on heat and mass transport.

Main Results:

• Equilibrium vapor uptake alone is insufficient for predicting AWH system performance.
• Heat and mass transport properties significantly impact system efficiency.
• A modeling framework was used to optimize a solar thermal-driven adsorption-based AWH system.

Conclusions:

• Sorbent-based AWH systems require careful consideration of heat and mass transport for effective design.
• Optimized AWH systems can enhance decentralized water supply.
• Further strategies for improving heat and mass transport in sorbent systems are crucial for AWH advancement.