With less than 0.04 inches of rain every year, cities in the Chilean Atacama desert, one of the driest places in the world, collide their water from the old groundwater sources. Now, researchers have identified another simple method that could help address water shortage.
An international team of researchers in Chile has tested the viability of a water collection method that could be directly from Dune: Fog harvest. Technology also brings Star Wars To mind, namely, the moisture farmers of Tatooine. The practice could provide significant relief to people living in poor and informal environments without access to a stable water source, according to the studyPosted today in the magazine Borders in Environmental Sciences,
“The collection and use of water, especially unconventional sources such as fog water, represents a key opportunity to improve the quality of life of the inhabitants,” Virginia Carter, an expert in sustainable development in the mayor of the University and the First co -author of the study, he said in a Borders statement. Carter and his colleagues conducted their study in the fast -growing municipality of Alto Hospicio, where around 10,000 people live in informal settlements, only 1.6 percent of which are connected to water distribution networks.
The team used simple fog collectors: very thin networks, or mesh, high for two posts. The moisture in the air is condensed into drops in the material, which then flows to a channel and to a water tank. Although their methods are not as innovative as science fiction stillsuits that recycle urine in drinking water (which currently seems reserved for space exploration), fog collectors are passive systems that do not require electricity or other energy to function.
“When showing its potential in Alto Hospicio, one of the most stigmatized but quickly urbanizing cities in Chile, this study establishes the basis for the broadest adoption in other urban areas of water shortage,” said Nathalie Verbrugghe, engineer of the free university of Bruxelles and another first co -author of the study.
Carter, Verbrugghe and his colleagues revealed that 38.61 square miles (100 square kilometers) could produce between 0.05 and 1.32 gallons (0.2 and five liters) of water fog for 10.76 square feet (one square meter) per day. August and September were the peak months for the collection of fog water, with researchers gathering up to 2.64 gallons (10 liters) for 10.76 square feet (one square meter) per day.
“This research represents a notable change in the perception of the use of fog water, from a rural small -scale solution to a practical water resource for cities,” Carter explained.
Researchers estimate that a relatively small mesh area could collect enough water to water the green spaces of high hospice. Escaling the system with larger fog collectors could even provide enough water to meet the weekly needs of the city’s informal settlements. They also suggest that fog water could be used for soil -free agriculture, potentially producing up to 44 pounds (20 kilograms) of green leafy vegetables every month.
The researchers point out some deficiencies to their analysis. Its promising results came from fog collectors at higher altitudes outside the city limits, so its regular use would require a significant distribution infrastructure in addition to large storage systems. Other “key requirements include fog density, adequate wind patterns and highly oriented high relief shapes. In addition, since the fog is seasonal in many regions, this variability must be considered, ”said Verbrugghe. In fact, Carter emphasized that “fog can serve as a complementary urban water supply”, and not a comprehensive solution for water scarcity.
However, the team still expects “to encourage politicians to integrate this renewable source in national water strategies,” Carter concluded. “This could improve urban resilience to climate change and rapid urbanization while improving access to clean water.”
Although the collection of fog alone will not solve the shortage of water, ultimately it represents an innovative and sustainable method of water collection that one day could become an important tool in the water management of the desert communities.