nslenders t1_j23oy44 wrote on December 29, 2022 at 12:49 PM

Reply to comment by HardCounter in Lego world map of energy to harvest water from the atmosphere [OC] https://doi.org/10.1039/d2ee01071b by WaterScienceProf

My mind does not think in Kj. But if u tell me something uses as much energy as a 50W lightbulb for 1h. I know what that means.

I do know that 3600Kj equals 1Kwh. So I used that as an intermediate step to do the conversion. It does not have to be a relevant value on the map.

The reason I found the values low. Is that I have a big dehumidifier that uses 2000W. But it does not give me 40L every hour. But OP already explained that these are theoretical minimum values.

HardCounter t1_j23rmj8 wrote on December 29, 2022 at 1:15 PM

2000W? Is it industrial strength? You'd probably get a lot more water if you put the dehumidifier outside, though.

> Portable dehumidifiers typically consume between 30 and 50 watts while whole-home dehumidifiers can use up to 250 watts per hour.

https://www.perchenergy.com/energy-calculators/dehumidifier-electricity-usage-cost-to-run

I also found this:

> On average, a home dehumidifier collects five gallons of water per day.

That's about 19 liters per day inside an already dehumidified home. That comes out to about 315 watts per liter in a relatively low (30-50%) humidity environment. That's not too bad.

I should get a dehumidifier in case of zombie apocalypse.

Fhotaku t1_j287bsz wrote on December 30, 2022 at 9:56 AM

I did the legwork for a phd project that involved comparing indoor dehumidifiers efficacy on AWC in a desert. The cost varied wildly, in the 10c-4$/liter range, but that also included tests at 5% humidity and 120F outside, and others while it was raining.

Most places could use active systems like this for cheaper and cleaner water than they're currently getting. I will mention though, the refrigeration based dehumidifier collected every damn particulate in the air with it. It definitely needed filtration. Even moreso, this water is salt-free, and you can't live off that. These are costs to consider when using AWC.