Smart materials for atmospheric water management and water harvesting

用于大气水管理和集水的智能材料

• 批准号: DP230100679
• 负责人: Prof Geoffrey Spinks
• 金额: $ 29.43万
• 依托单位: University of Wollongong
• 依托单位国家: 澳大利亚
• 项目类别: Discovery Projects
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 澳大利亚
• 起止时间: 2023-01-01 至 2025-12-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://dataportal.arc.gov.au/RGS/Web/Grants/DP230100679
• 关键词: Smart; materials; atmospheric; water; management

Fresh water is a scarce resource in many parts of the globe but uncomfortably over-supplied in other regions. Dehumidifying machines, such as air conditioners, are extensively used in humid climates to enhance human comfort, but with great energy costs. Likewise, the production of potable water in remote dry regions is energy intensive. We propose novel hyper-absorbent desiccating polymers combined into sorption-powered engines inspired by nastic movements in plants to develop extremely efficient dehumidifiers and water harvesting machines. These polymer actuators can help address the auto-acceleration of climate change caused by the increasing use of air conditioners and provide cheap, clean water for remote communities.

淡水在地球仪的许多地方都是稀缺资源，但在其他区域却供应过剩，令人不安。空调等除湿机器广泛用于潮湿气候，以提高人体舒适度，但能源成本很高。同样，在偏远干旱地区生产饮用水也是能源密集型的。我们提出了一种新型的高吸水性干燥聚合物，结合到吸收动力发动机中，灵感来自植物中的nastic运动，以开发非常有效的除湿器和水收集机。这些聚合物执行器可以帮助解决由于空调使用增加而导致的气候变化自动加速问题，并为偏远社区提供廉价清洁的水。