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The work of LaserON researchers featured on the cover of the top-tier journal ADVANCED MATERIALS

LaserON researchers develop an innovative system to collect dew water and combat drought.

Ensuring universal and equitable access to water is one of the main challenges facing humanity, especially given that 4 billion people currently suffer from water shortages, a growing trend. One solution to addressing drought could lie in the air we breathe, according to researchers from the LaserON group, part of the Cintecx center at the University of Vigo. The experts, in collaboration with French scientists, have designed an innovative system that allows for the collection of dew water, the details of which are described in an article recently published in the top-tier international journal Advanced Materials. Their proposal is based on laser microtexturing, which allows dew water to be collected in the same way that plants do at night.

The publication, which appears on the cover of the latest issue of the journal, is co-authored by some of the leading experts in dew condensation, such as Daniel Beysens (Physique et Mécanique des Milieux Hétérogènes, CNRS, ESPCI, France); Tarik Bourouina (Esycom Lab, CNRS, France); and Anne Mongruel (Sorbonne Université, France).

Patent Application Filed
The new system, for which a European patent application has already been filed, consists of a metal surface that has been given a microtexture using a specific laser treatment. This microtextured surface achieves self-cooling when exposed to the night sky thanks to its enhanced infrared emissivity, causing water condensation similar to natural dew on plant leaves. Laser microtexturing promotes condensation in the form of a continuous film on the surface rather than dispersed droplets, unlike what occurs on leaves, and this allows for efficient and autonomous water collection.
The system was continuously tested for over a year on the roof of the Institut de Physique du Globe in Paris, thus demonstrating its robustness and good performance.

Read the publication here:

See the dew water collection in the following videos:

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Post Author: LaserON Group