"But
rising awareness of water scarcity issues has led researchers like Gan
and his team in Buffalo to apply new techniques to make solar
distillation more efficient. Their solar vapor generator and condenser
uses porous paper covered with carbon black, a material that has a
near-zero reflectivity and therefore absorbs a higher amount of solar
heat. The carbon-covered paper is then placed over floating white
polystyrene foam and a thermal insulator that helps concentrate the
solar heat onto the carbon layer. The device is then placed on the
surface of a dirty water source while the paper acts as a sponge and the
carbon as an evaporator. The vapor then condenses on the angled wall of
the vaporizer, seeping into a culvert that collects the potable water.
Gan
and his team have claimed that their prototype produces as much as
three times more potable water as comparable solar stills, or about 4.2
cups an hour under sunny conditions. The average healthy adult needs
about eight cups of water a day. Crucially, this is all done using cheap
materials that can be scaled, meaning arrays of floating stills could
be tapped in emergency situations to provide a considerable amount of
fresh drinking water to a disaster-struck community, especially in the
sunny parts of Africa, Asia and Latin America.In November, the researchers registered a company called Sunny Clean Water and are hoping to have a production-ready version of their prototype by the end of the year. "
I believe clean water will be one of the most important problems in the near future, around the world. Any cheap method like this will be very welcome.
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