Harvesting Fresh Water from Fog

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  • čas přidán 7. 05. 2014
  • Researchers at MIT's School of Engineering, working with colleagues at the Pontificial University of Chile in Santiago, are harvesting potable water from the coastal fog that forms on the edge of one of the driest regions on earth. Using a simple system of suspended mesh structures, placed on hilltops in areas with persistent fog and prevailing westerly winds, local Chilean communities collect fog water for drinking and agricultural use. Fog collecting technology is still in its infancy but laboratory experiments have shown that variations in the mesh spacing as well as the size and the wettability of the fibers in the mesh all affect the volume of water that can be collected each day. Through engineering analysis and optimization of the mesh geometry and its surface chemistry the team has been able to increase the fog collecting efficiency of existing designs by 500%. The technology holds great promise as a locally deployable and scalable alternative to other energy-intensive desalination technologies. Mesh-based Fog Harvesters are passive, inexpensive to fabricate, with close to zero operating costs, and can be deployed in similar environments throughout the world.
  • Věda a technologie

Komentáře • 51

  • @markchang9903
    @markchang9903 Před 10 lety +9

    Proud of the work being done with such an big impact to the local society. Keep it up. Worth doing.

  • @peetsnort
    @peetsnort Před 6 lety +2

    This is what cape town needs. Not smug remarks about it not being new. I think someone should be improving the share of the technology and let the capetonions know about it

  • @uChakide
    @uChakide Před 10 lety +9

    This idea is nothing new, there were projects doing the same thing in Spain and Namibia in the 80's. I'm glad that they are continuing the research.

    • @Baerchenization
      @Baerchenization Před 7 lety

      Yes I had even seen this project started in the Andes over 20 years ago...

    • @peetsnort
      @peetsnort Před 6 lety +1

      uChakide when I was younger I lived in cape town and one night I came home late after part and walked under a big blue gum tree that was making its own rain from the night air. The stars were shining bright and not a cloud to be seen. The refrigerant sap in the blue gum which is also used by Holywood stuntman to cover the body while setting alight

  • @peetsnort
    @peetsnort Před 6 lety +1

    Blue gum tree makes rain at night from air. At about 3 to 5 in the morning. You can see it in action with clear skies and moist winds. Just dripping on the ground

  • @juliannevillecorrea
    @juliannevillecorrea Před 4 lety +2

    thank you !

  • @nickmancini5633
    @nickmancini5633 Před 10 lety +1

    Awesome video, great idea!

  • @SuperGreatSphinx
    @SuperGreatSphinx Před 9 lety +4

    “What a great genius this water is!
    It has thousands of different beautiful faces:
    It is a rainbow, an ocean, a lake, an iceberg, a waterfall, a river, a drop, a fog…
    What a great genius this water is!”
    ― Mehmet Murat ildan

  • @vinaynadig3258
    @vinaynadig3258 Před 8 lety +3

    Have a question here. How efficiently can this be practised in areas where smog exist instead of fog?

  • @warrenmoses7370
    @warrenmoses7370 Před 7 lety

    Cape Town need this our dams are so low there are water restrictions and by laws we currently have less than 60 days left of water

  • @meiji728
    @meiji728 Před 5 lety +2

    how much humidity (at least) is needed to catch water from fog ?
    is there role of speed of air in that particular area ?

  • @JamesC696
    @JamesC696 Před 4 lety

    Great idea. Can California get some of these at the Golden Gate Bridge instead of suicide barriers?

  • @meiji728
    @meiji728 Před 5 lety

    can we use routine shadow nets for catching fog ? they are also made of same propylene material ?

    • @malcolmmcfarlane7565
      @malcolmmcfarlane7565 Před 5 lety +1

      Thats what has been used for decades, but it is not as efficient as the new material and its architecture.
      www.newscientist.com/article/mg22229754.400-fog-catchers-pull-water-from-air-in-chiles-dry-fields/

  • @1.4142
    @1.4142 Před 2 lety

    They are becoming more widespread

  • @someone-cs3lk
    @someone-cs3lk Před 9 lety +6

    where do you buy the net/ mesh

    • @MariaMartinez-researcher
      @MariaMartinez-researcher Před 3 lety

      It's a common black plastic net used to give shadow. In Chile it's called "malla raschel", also "malla sombra" and "malla kiwi." I guess you can buy ir wherever they have home/garden or agricultural supplies.

  • @davidconjefferson
    @davidconjefferson Před 7 lety

    Would that also mean that If you modified an E'ole Water turbine's humidity condenser with the nanomesh, that the water gain would be increased 500% for the E'ole Water turbine as well (approx. 1,000 l/day × 5 (500%) = 5,000 liters per day per turbine?

  • @kenheaton5489
    @kenheaton5489 Před 2 lety

    Re greening deserts cloud harvesting idea.
    Fog harvesting nets suspended from weather ballon
    Anchored to a water collection point.
    If you look at any photos of desert regions
    You can generally see some cloud formations in the sky
    Which means there is amount of water in the atmosphere
    above most deserts.
    If you was to incorporate modern fog harvesting nets
    Such as found in Peru & the Rif Mountains in Morocco.
    & suspended them from weather balloons & flown in the sky
    This can be used to channeled the moisture from the atmosphere
    Down to a collection point via Ropes or light weight piping.
    A water tubing can then be added to the system to also
    Provide electricity to local villages
    This water can the be distributed to villages to be used for
    People, crops or livestock .

  • @marbiangkinikhla3555
    @marbiangkinikhla3555 Před 7 lety

    If i want to avail this project in my homeland Meghalaya which is a place known as the abode of clouds how do we get into conatct. Please provide info details

  • @MytreeTv
    @MytreeTv Před 7 lety +1

    #treetastic #teawwork! Well done! 500%!

  • @Kargetii
    @Kargetii Před 7 lety

    what is the cost and from where I can purchase it please tell me..wanted for my village in almora ,utterakhand.India,or if I can make it locally or not if yes than how....

    • @malcolmmcfarlane7565
      @malcolmmcfarlane7565 Před 5 lety

      www.newscientist.com/article/mg22229754.400-fog-catchers-pull-water-from-air-in-chiles-dry-fields/

    • @MariaMartinez-researcher
      @MariaMartinez-researcher Před 3 lety

      Look for plastic mesh to make shadow a.k.a. "malla raschel."

  • @jomama5186
    @jomama5186 Před 2 lety

    Califprnia should be doing this

  • @trader0108
    @trader0108 Před 7 lety

    I wonder if many of these devices were to be placed in the high mountain elevation watershed areas of the lakes that are now drying up ( such as Walker Lake in Hawthorne, Nevada USA and Lake Mead in Nevada ), if then these lake water levels could be gradually brought back up to their normal desired water levels.

    • @davidlittle611
      @davidlittle611 Před 2 lety

      We’re talking about hundreds of gallons per LFC at max efficiency, not billions.

  • @oliviadestandau4243
    @oliviadestandau4243 Před 10 lety +1

    I live in California, where we are no in full drought... This could be part of the remedy.

    • @rowanw1131
      @rowanw1131 Před 10 lety

      no we need rain.

    • @JustinJaybrown
      @JustinJaybrown Před 7 lety +1

      Rowan W we could utilize both. You don't get rain by conserving, you get a release of moister through the perspiration of plants so in a desert environment one could theoretically terraform a new climate through planting more plants and building lined creeks.

  • @GeorginaLaraBooth
    @GeorginaLaraBooth Před 8 lety

    Thank you Mr Raccoon

  • @Smoke1
    @Smoke1 Před 8 lety

    Wow, next thing you know scientists will learn to harvest lightning.

    • @JustinJaybrown
      @JustinJaybrown Před 7 lety

      Smoke lightning is a product not the source. The atmosphere is charged already.

    • @MariaMartinez-researcher
      @MariaMartinez-researcher Před 3 lety

      Technically, every electric appliance in your home works on homemade lightning.

  • @namdevmore5146
    @namdevmore5146 Před 5 lety +1

    For mesh fabrication I have one hypotheses which may helps to you ..where should I share that will you provide me some official email id . So I can share it with you

  • @shashwat8649
    @shashwat8649 Před 7 lety

    who does dislike it?

  • @ALANLEEY
    @ALANLEEY Před 7 lety +1

    It's gonna be a day when we rally se capturing vast amounts of fog water is very harmful to down stream plants and animals.

  • @imbw267
    @imbw267 Před 3 lety

    Moisture farming!

  • @oystein18
    @oystein18 Před 3 lety

    The should at least have planted some trees with that water

    • @1.4142
      @1.4142 Před 2 lety

      It almost never rains in the Atacama, which trees need to supply their roots, so trees don't grow there naturally. Trees lose a lot of water through their leaves so they would shrivel up and die quite quickly there. The only way plants get moisture is from the marine fog that briefly drifts inland in the morning.

    • @oystein18
      @oystein18 Před 2 lety

      Think many tree species like cedar and pine would handle it fine. But it would probably alter the ecosystem 😅

    • @1.4142
      @1.4142 Před 2 lety

      @@oystein18 I mean, it rains 15 mm per year there, so I don't think they would survive.

    • @oystein18
      @oystein18 Před 2 lety

      @@1.4142 They live on capillary water underground. The roots need to be atleast a meter long to start to find it in hot and dry climates.

  • @centpushups
    @centpushups Před 6 lety

    They need to plant some wild grass ASAP.

  • @oliviadestandau4243
    @oliviadestandau4243 Před 10 lety

    some 'clever' person said 'no we need more rain'... well 'duh'. but we aren't GETTING rain. Should we just pretend there is nothing more? USE YOUR BRAIN (if you have one).

  • @CrocUser
    @CrocUser Před 2 lety

    School 💀