Skip to main content

Understanding Atmospheric Water Harvesting

As water scarcity becomes a growing concern worldwide, Atmospheric Water Generators (AWGs) are gaining attention as a sustainable and innovative way to produce clean water. AWGs capture water from air — a process that provides reliable solutions for areas with limited access to traditional water sources. 

Depicting the Problem

In the heart of this arid landscape, a remote community struggles with an increasingly dire challenge: water scarcity. Once able to rely on seasonal rains and local wells, they now face a harsh reality as climate change intensifies droughts and depletes their water sources. Water is essential here for drinking, cooking, farming, and livestock, but securing enough is becoming harder each year. This community’s struggle is not unique; countless others around the world face the same growing crisis and the urgent question of where to find water.

Groundwater

For generations, the community depended on groundwater. Their wells, once abundant, were a trusted source, sustaining them through dry seasons. But over time, they noticed the water levels dropping. Some wells ran dry, others turned brackish, and each new borehole became more expensive to drill. Without enough recharge from rainfall, the underground reserves were disappearing faster than they could replenish. The community had to face a painful truth: groundwater alone could no longer sustain them. They needed to find another way.

Desalination

One day, the community learned about a potential solution — desalinated water. Seawater could be transformed into fresh water, an idea that sparked hope. However, they soon discovered that desalination had its own environmental and financial drawbacks. The process required significant investment, making it an expensive long-term solution. Additionally, desalination plants produced brine as a byproduct, which was discharged back into the ocean, harming local marine life. While desalination seemed like a hopeful solution, it was far from perfect.

Transporting Water

Despite these concerns, the remote community saw desalination as an opportunity and hoped water could be delivered to them from such a plant. Soon, trucks began to arrive, transporting water from the coast to their village. At first, the deliveries brought relief, providing much-needed water for drinking, cooking, and farming. But soon, the community realized the costs were high. Each shipment relied on long, fuel-intensive journeys, and delays from weather or truck breakdowns left them vulnerable. The rising transport costs made them feel dependent on a fragile system.

Recycling

Seeking resilience, they turned to recycling wastewater. They built treatment systems to purify what they had used, stretching their limited supply. The results were promising, reducing waste and easing scarcity. But the process was slow to implement, requiring infrastructure and investment they struggled to afford. They wondered: what if they could find a source of water that doesn’t rely on the land or existing supply chains?

What If…

What if there is a better way of supplying water in arid regions?

What if we democratize the access to water with a decentralized water supply from an abundant source?

What if water can be generated exactly where it’s needed, without depleting scarce resources?

What if we harvest water from air…?

Atmospheric Water Harvesting

In their search for answers, the community discovers atmospheric water harvesting — a way to pull clean, life-giving water directly from the air around them. Unlike previous solutions, this does not drain rivers, wells, or distant reserves. Instead, it transforms the invisible into the essential. Traditional atmospheric water harvesting methods come with challenges — energy costs and dependence on humidity — but innovations like Atoco’s nano-engineered materials can mitigate these issues leveraging free ambient energy. The community sees a future where water is not a distant resource to be chased but something created, right where they stand.

What is Atmospheric Water Harvesting? How does it work?

Atmospheric water harvesting taps into the inexhaustible resource of atmospheric water. It relies on capturing moisture from the surrounding air and transforming it into potable water.

 

An Atmospheric Water Generator uses this approach by pulling in air and extracting water using different methods.

 

First, the air is drawn into the system, where it undergoes either a cooling process, adsorption, or desiccation to separate the moisture. The water extracted from air is exceptionally pure, requiring only filtration, slight purification, and possible mineralization to make it suitable for human consumption or other uses.  

 

This self-contained process means AWGs can function independently of existing water infrastructure, providing essential water for various applications. 

Methods of Atmospheric Water Harvesting

Water can be extracted from air through fog harvesting, condensation, desiccants, or adsorption.

 

Fog harvesting captures water droplets using mesh structures. It requires no energy but depends on consistent fog, making it viable only in certain climates.

 

Condensation-based AWGs cool air to its dew point to produce water. In dry climates, this requires significant energy, making them inefficient. Most cannot operate below 45% humidity, limiting their effectiveness in arid areas.

 

Desiccant-based systems absorb moisture and work better in low-humidity areas. However, regenerating desiccants requires high temperatures, leading to high energy consumption.

 

Adsorption-based systems use porous materials – sorbents – to capture and release water. These sorbents “attract” water molecules to their surface. Adsorption-based AWGs can operate in low-humidity environments, but efficiency depends on material capacity, energy use, and climate conditions.

 

 

Atmospheric Water Harvesting Based on Reticular Materials

A new approach to water extraction uses novel reticular materials designed to adsorb water even at extremely low humidity. These materials harness free ambient energy, providing a sustainable, energy-efficient solution.

 

Due to their unique properties, reticular materials enable applications beyond conventional Air to Water Technology. Unlike traditional systems that need electricity and high humidity, they function efficiently in ultra-dry conditions without external power, offering a breakthrough for water-scarce regions.

 

While condensation and desiccant methods struggle in arid areas, reticular materials push the limits of water harvesting. They offer a reliable and decentral solution for drinking water in dry climates. As this technology advances, AWGs will help address water scarcity and support communities and industries in need.

 

Diagram of the Atoco Water Harvester system showing ambient air intake, solar panel electricity generation, thermal energy inputs, and output of condensed liquid water, representing sustainable atmospheric water generation technology.

Atoco’s Water Harvesting Solutions

The future of atmospheric water harvesting lies in harnessing novel technologies such as our nano-engineered reticular materials to provide reliable, efficient, and sustainable water solutions for the world’s most water-stressed regions.

Atoco develops water harvesting solutions that efficiently harvest clean water out of the atmosphere, even under dry conditions with relative humidity below 20%. Atoco’s AWH technology operates efficiently in both On-Grid and Off-Grid modes (without relying on an external electricity supply), enabling a wide range of applications.

Learn More
Green oasis with an Atoco water harvester in a desert landscape, showcasing sustainable water generation technology in arid environments powered by renewable energy.