Search Results for: Ethanol

Transforming Air Into Pure Drinking Water Is Finally Possible, Here’s How

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Climate change threatens to make dry regions even drier, so scientists at UC Berkeley created a device to make water out of thin air.

At least one hundred million people live in desert regions around the world according to the UN, and they survive off of less than 25 cm of rainfall each year, and for many, even that minuscule water supply is under threat as the climate crisis is making dry areas even drier.
So scientists at UC Berkeley have been experimenting with materials that can pull drinking water out of thin air.

That’s right, right out of thin air.

A chemist at the University of California, Berkeley reported that he and his colleagues have created a solar-powered device that could provide water to millions living in water-stressed regions.

At the device’s heart is a porous crystalline material, known as a metal-organic framework (MOF), that acts like a sponge: It sucks water vapor out of air, even in the desert, and then releases it as liquid water.

A single gram of an MOF can have the surface area of a football field, and depending on the metal and organic molecules they’re made of, MOFs can be tailored to capture various different things in their pores. For example, an MOF could have the ability to capture CO2 and turn it into the fuel methanol, or neutralizing nerve agents like sarin gas. The function the Berkeley scientists used their MOF for was extracting water vapor that’s present in the air.

The lead researcher behind the device started a private company called Water Harvesting.

The company’s plan is to launch a microwave-sized device that can supply 2 adults with enough water for their daily hydration and cooking needs. Eventually the research team envisions a harvester device big enough to supply a small village. If the devices end up being affordable, safe, and reliable enough, these metal-organic frameworks have the potential to turn even the driest desert into an oasis.

Energy Hunger, Energy Guzzlers and Energy Providers, Part 2

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHmp7_r1PG8&feature=youtu.be
Mobility is one of the world’s biggest drivers of energy consumption.
The switch to renewable energies will affect people’s everyday lives. How will we get from A to B when fossil fuel reserves run out in the future? How will we fly around the globe without oil and gas?

Mobility is one of the world’s biggest drivers of energy consumption. The transportation of people and goods by road, rail and air accounts for around 34 percent of total energy consumption. The electrification of mobility has already begun and, as the example of Norway shows, it could be one solution – but not for trucks and industrial vehicles. Is fuel cell technology a viable alternative here? Japan firmly believes it is.

Could electrification also revolutionize air transport? Siemens and Airbus want to make aviation history here and are working on a regional aircraft with a hybrid electric drive – but it won’t work for long-haul flights. But scientists from ETH Zurich and the German Aerospace Center are working on a spectacular solution to the long-haul problem: synthetic kerosene from sunlight.

An alternative to heavy oil is also being sought for shipping. Neither electric propulsion nor fuel cells will work for gigantic cruise liners and above all for the container ships that account for a large part of world trade. Methanol, which can be produced sustainably, could be the answer and a large prototype vessel is currently undergoing trials.

In addition to mobility, digitalization is one of the great power guzzlers of the 21st Century. Streaming services, cloud computing and the Internet of Things are all increasing our energy requirements. Experts anticipate consumption will increase by around 40% over the next 12 years. Microsoft’s server farms alone will consume as much electricity as a medium-sized European country. Where’s that power going to come from? We have to cut back our consumption.

This will also apply to our future lives. The world’s first self-sufficient apartment building is located in Switzerland and shows how you can become energy independent. The future will be in networked houses that exchange electricity among themselves.