KIMM: Air to Drinking Water Converter

2024: Product Announcement

On August 20, 2024, researchers from the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM) reported the development of a portable air-to-drinking water converter. It is expected that this innovative system, placed in a bag, will find application in a variety of areas - from military and emergency situations to the tourism industry and maintaining life in remote hard-to-reach areas.

According to the developers, the new plant has high efficiency, which is due to the unique four-stage cycle of moisture collection: absorption, evaporation, condensation and sterilization. This process allows a significant amount of moisture to be collected from the air while consuming less energy than traditional dehumidifiers.

source = Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials

One of the features of the novelty is hygienicity. The system effectively kills bacteria on the cooling ribs, ensuring the safety of the resulting water. The cleaning process uses an environmentally friendly filter based on diatoms.

The moisture collection efficiency of the portable system is claimed to be more than twice that of conventional devices with thermoelectric modules. This is achieved because the heating surface of the thermoelectric module has a dual function. In the absorption mode, moisture from the air is collected on this surface. Then, in the heating mode, the accumulated moisture is transferred to the condensing plate. Another advantage of the developed system over other devices is high energy efficiency. By combining absorption, condensation and sterilization modes in one thermoelectric module, energy consumption is minimized. The KIMM team intends to bring its development to the commercial market in partnership with Puresys.^[1]

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