---> https://www.electricaltechnology.org/2026/02/nobel-chemist-turns-air-into-water.html

At the heart of the technology are advanced materials known as Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs).

These specially engineered materials contain billions of microscopic pores that can capture water molecules from the air. Despite weighing only a few grams, MOFs have an enormous internal surface area, allowing them to absorb significant amounts of moisture.

Imagine producing clean drinking water straight from the air, even in some of the driest places on Earth. That vision is becoming a reality thanks to a groundbreaking invention developed by a Nobel Prize-winning scientist.

As air moves through the machine, the MOFs trap water vapour. When exposed to sunlight or low levels of heat, the materials release the captured moisture, which is then condensed into clean liquid water.

Unlike many traditional atmospheric water generators, the system does not rely on energy-hungry cooling equipment. Instead, it operates using solar heat, making it suitable for off-grid locations. The invention is based on a branch of chemistry known as reticular chemistry, a field pioneered by Yaghi himself.
The technology can reportedly work even in environments where humidity levels fall below 20 per cent, opening up possibilities for arid regions where water is scarce

More at:
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/new-updates/no-rivers-no-wells-no-rain-needed-how-a-nobel-prize-winning-scientists-invention-produces-up-to-1000-litres-of-drinking-water-daily-from-thin-air/articleshow/131485522.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

11 minutes ago, Externet said:

Unlike many traditional atmospheric water generators, the system does not rely on energy-hungry cooling equipment. Instead, it operates using solar heat, making it suitable for off-grid locations.

Regardless of the technology, the laws of thermodynamics still apply.

9 hours ago, KJW said:

Regardless of the technology, the laws of thermodynamics still apply.

Yes, I admit I don't quite follow how this works. It speaks of the adsorbed water being released from the structure by solar heating, but then being "condensed", implying what is released is water vapour. So to condense it requires latent heat to be removed. How is this achieved, given that solar heating will be available during the day, while the lower temperature needed for condensation only obtains at night?

Addendum: I've found a paper on this (from 3 years ago): https://yaghi.berkeley.edu/pdfPublications/23MOFwaterdevice.pdf

It seems there is an aluminium heat sink shielded from sunlight. The MOF material adsorbs water at night and then releases it as a vapour under solar heating during the day. The device relies on the heat sink still remaining cool enough to condense it (I suppose it all takes place in the early morning). The point, presumably is that the partial pressure of the water vapour released is far higher than in the ambient air from which it was adsorbed, and above the dew point at the temperature of the heat sink.

By the way, I read in yesterday's FT that Omar Yaghi, the Nobel winning chemist who has worked on this, has now decamped from the USA to China, due to the hostile attitude of the Trump administration towards science research. Nice one Donald!

Edited 10 hours ago10 hr by exchemist

Is this a more sophisticated version of the 'Desert Still' ?

10 minutes ago, studiot said:

Is this a more sophisticated version of the 'Desert Still' ?

Very likely. But what is the operating principle of the desert still?

8 minutes ago, exchemist said:

Very likely. But what is the operating principle of the desert still?

Not sure if the moisture in the still is drawn out of the ground by the heath robinson greenhouse into the air, where it then condenses again and runs down inside the device to the collector.