Direct Air Carbon Capture Prototype: “Violet” with Prof. Tao Wang

This is a laboratory tour of a miniature moisture swing Direct Air Carbon Capture (DACC) machine prototype led by Prof. Tao Wang at the University of Zhejiang, China. Prof. Wang is a leading authority and research engineer on DACC technology, and directs a lab focused on advancing moisture swing development. He is a key technical contributor to the OpenAir Collective, a global, open volunteer network accelerating carbon dioxide removal innovation through collaborative research and development, policy advocacy and demonstration projects.
Professor Wang’s research is the basis of “Violet”, a new OpenAir mission to launch the world’s first open source, peer-produced DACC machine in 2020. More information coming soon at www.theopenaircollective.org.
A sample of related articles published in authored and co-authored by Dr. Wang's
- "Moisture Swing Sorbent for Carbon Dioxide Capture from Ambient Air." - Environmental Science and Technology (2011)
- "Integrated direct air capture and CO2 utilization of gas fertilizer based on moisture swing adsorption." - Applied Physics and Engineering (2017)
- "Designing Moisture-Swing CO2 Sorbents through Anion Screening of Polymeric Ionic Liquids." Energy and Fuels (2017).
#CarbonCapture,
#DirectAirCarbonCapture,
#OpenAir

[@constantlychangin]

Grrrreat stuff as always!!

[@TecraTube]

needs liquid deseccant for the dehumidifier portion

[@ancapftw9113]

I think 3A molecular sieves will adsorb water from the air. When you need to dry the air, expose it to a chamber of these. When you need to moisten the air, heat up the sieves. No moving parts, just a heating coil.
Though I think it will also absorb CO2, so you might have to heat the sorbent material, then chill the gas to seperate the water out, kind of like a freeze drier.
Or just heat the material to remove the co2, and not use water. I'm not sure of the specifics, but heating and cooling is likely faster but uses more energy.

[@starvwars-ro4qc]

Can I buy a machine to use in a hydroponic room?

[@openaircollect]

Great question! We have thought about this very application. We are in the process of refining the successor to Violet, Epiphyte. Should have a working model by July 4th. It's open source, and with some partners at a university or maker space, you could build your own. Take a look here. Links to our weekly stream right in there. Check us out! epiphyte.my.canva.site/