Cleaning Of Contaminated Water Using Wood, Bacteria And Sunlight
Eddie Gonzales Jr. – MessageToEagle.com – About one-fifth of the world’s population lives in areas where water is scarce.
Therefore, technologies to produce clean water from undrinkable sources, such as seawater, river or lake water, and contaminated water, are urgently needed.
Cleaning water with sunlight, bacteria, and wood. Image source
Now, researchers reporting in Nano Letters have developed a wood-based steam generator that, with the help of bacterial-produced nanomaterials, harnesses solar energy to purify water.
The researchers made their device with the help of bacteria that produced long cellulose nanofibers, which bound the layers of the device together. The team added bacteria to the surface of a block of wood and allowed them to ferment. Then, they sprayed an aerosol of glass bubbles—tiny hollow spheres that provide excellent thermal insulation—onto the surface.
The glass bubbles became embedded in the cellulose nanofibers produced by the bacteria, forming a hydrogel. Finally, the researchers added carbon nanotubes, which tangled with the cellulose nanofibers to form a light-absorbing, water-evaporating top layer.
The device works by transporting water upward through the wood to the light-absorbing layer, which is heated by the sun. The water evaporates, and the steam is collected and condensed to produce pure water. The insulating layer of glass bubbles keeps heat from being transferred downward through the device and lost, and the nanoscale structures lower the energy required for water vaporization.
As a result, the new device has a higher evaporation rate and efficiency than most existing solar steam generators.
Written by Eddie Gonzales Jr. – MessageToEagle.com Staff
Related Posts
-
Are Machines Smarter Than A 6-Year-Old?
No Comments | Mar 14, 2023 -
Researchers Developed A Soft, Stretchable And Self-Powered Thermometer
No Comments | Feb 4, 2022 -
Self-Powered, Printable Smart Sensors Created From Emerging Semiconductors Could Mean Cheaper, Greener Internet Of Things
No Comments | Jan 4, 2023 -
Ultra-Efficient Tech To Power Devices Of Tomorrow And Forge Sustainable Energy Future
No Comments | Sep 10, 2021 -
Climate Change And Hydrogen Economy – Study
No Comments | Aug 12, 2021 -
Scientists Could Discover Physical Laws Faster Using New Machine Learning Technique
No Comments | Dec 15, 2021 -
Expressing And Recognizing Intentions In Robots
No Comments | Sep 16, 2022 -
New Wearable Device Turns The Body Into A Battery
No Comments | Feb 25, 2021 -
Is It Possible To Transmit Messages And Speech Through The Skin? – Researchers Have A Method
No Comments | Sep 13, 2018 -
Risks Of Using AI To Grow Our Food Are Substantial And Must Not Be Ignored, Warn Researchers
No Comments | Feb 23, 2022