Invented purifier that can make even water from the Dead Sea drinkable

Despite all our technological advancements, access to clean water still poses a significant problem – not only for third world countries but also here in Croatia, where water shortages during natural disasters or disasters caused by human activity can contaminate drinking water and threaten, if not life, then at least the standard of living. Scientists have created a cost-effective technology that addresses this issue using hydrogels. Utilizing solar energy, these materials made from gel-polymers can purify water from any source – including saltwater from the Dead Sea.

A team led by researcher Guihua Yu at the University of Texas at Austin has created a hydrogel that is both hydrophilic and a semiconductor, reports Inhabitat.

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– We actually reworked the entire approach to conventional water evaporation for purification purposes, said Yu. The system works by having water evaporate under direct sunlight, and then it is pumped into a condenser where sweet water is liquefied. In the process, it filters out harmful substances.

A solar vapor generator based on hydrogels can desalinate water much more cheaply than currently available methods, while using significantly less energy.

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– Water desalination by distillation is a common method for mass production of sweet water. However, current distillation technologies require large facilities and are quite energy-intensive, said Fei Zhao, a researcher involved in the project.

During testing of this technology, researchers obtained 25 liters of water per square meter – which is more than enough for areas affected by natural disasters or for households.