‘Bubbles’ turn air into drinkable water
COURTESY OF THE RESEARCHERS In the researchers’ prototype device, a half-square-meter panel of the hydrogel is enclosed in a glass chamber coated with a cooling polymer film. When the vapor captured by the textured material evaporates, the bubbles shrink down in an origami-like transformation. The vapor then condenses on the glass, where it can flow out through a tube. The system runs entirely on its own, unlike other designs that require batteries, solar panels, or electricity from the grid.