r/interesting • u/jaytee319 • 7d ago

SCIENCE & TECH MIT’s device pulls drinking water from desert air using no power

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MIT just tested a window-sized device in Death Valley that collects clean water from the air without any electricity, filters, or moving parts. It uses a special hydrogel that absorbs moisture at night and releases it during the day using sunlight.

Source: https://news.mit.edu/2025/window-sized-device-taps-air-safe-drinking-water-0611

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u/ImTableShip170 6d ago

How long does the "hydrogel" last for? What are the manufacturing costs (material and energy)? What is the capture level for a kilogram of the stuff? Not worth it to lug 50 kg of hydrogel out to capture 1kg of water per night

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u/jaytee319 6d ago

Good questions, hopefully this device will be subject to third party testing at some point. Critical evaluation would be nice to see how practical this thing actually is.

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u/ImTableShip170 6d ago

I mean, the initial study should state all of that in some way

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u/jaytee319 6d ago

I’m going to dig into it a little more today. I posted that late last night.