Polyzwitterionic Hydrogels for Efficient Atmospheric Water Harvesting

Abstract

Atmospheric water harvesting (AWH) is regarded as one of the promising strategies for freshwater production desirable to provide sustainable water for landlocked and arid regions. Hygroscopic materials have attracted widespread attention because of their water harvesting performance. However, the introduction of many inorganic salts often leads to aggregation and leakage issues in practical use. Here, polyzwitterionic hydrogels are developed as an effective AWH material platform. Via anti‐polyelectrolyte effects, the hygroscopic salt coordinated with polymer chains could capture moisture and enhance the swelling property, leading to a strong moisture sorption capacity. The hydrogel shows superior AWH performance (0.62 g g−1, 120 minutes for equilibrium at 30 % relative humidity) and produces 5.87 L kg−1 freshwater per day. It is anticipated that the polyzwitterionic hydrogels with unique salt‐responsive properties could provide new insights into the design and synthesis of next‐generation AWH materials.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Feb 10, 2022
Source ID
10.1002/ange.202200271

Entities

People

  • Chuxin Lei
  • Guihua Yu
  • Hengyi Lu
  • Weixin Guan
  • Wen Shi
  • Youhong Guo

Organizations

  • Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
  • University of Texas at Austin

Tags

Readers

  • Agricultural Chemistry/Soil Science
  • Battery Technology and Engineering
  • Systems Analysis and Design