Fog collection

About: Fog collection is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 207 publications have been published within this topic receiving 7338 citations.

Water capture by a desert beetle

Abstract: This insect has a tailor-made covering for collecting water from early-morning fog. Some beetles in the Namib Desert collect drinking water from fog-laden wind on their backs1. We show here that these large droplets form by virtue of the insect's bumpy surface, which consists of alternating hydrophobic, wax-coated and hydrophilic, non-waxy regions. The design of this fog-collecting structure can be reproduced cheaply on a commercial scale and may find application in water-trapping tent and building coverings, for example, or in water condensers and engines.

A multi-structural and multi-functional integrated fog collection system in cactus

Abstract: Multiple biological structures have demonstrated fog collection abilities, such as beetle backs with bumps and spider silks with periodic spindle-knots and joints. Many Cactaceae species live in arid environments and are extremely drought-tolerant. Here we report that one of the survival systems of the cactus Opuntia microdasys lies in its efficient fog collection system. This unique system is composed of well-distributed clusters of conical spines and trichomes on the cactus stem; each spine contains three integrated parts that have different roles in the fog collection process according to their surface structural features. The gradient of the Laplace pressure, the gradient of the surface-free energy and multi-function integration endow the cactus with an efficient fog collection system. Investigations of the structure-function relationship in this system may help us to design novel materials and devices to collect water from fog with high efficiencies.

Fog as a Fresh-Water Resource: Overview and Perspectives

Abstract: The collection of fog water is a simple and sustainable technology to obtain fresh water for afforestation, gardening, and as a drinking water source for human and animal consumption. In regions where fresh water is sparse and fog frequently occurs, it is feasible to set up a passive mesh system for fog water collection. The mesh is directly exposed to the atmosphere, and the foggy air is pushed through the mesh by the wind. Fog droplets are deposited on the mesh, combine to form larger droplets, and run down passing into a storage tank. Fog water collection rates vary dramatically from site to site but yearly averages from 3 to 10 l m−2 of mesh per day are typical of operational projects. The scope of this article is to review fog collection projects worldwide, to analyze factors of success, and to evaluate the prospects of this technology.

Optimal Design of Permeable Fiber Network Structures for Fog Harvesting

Abstract: Fog represents a large untapped source of potable water, especially in arid climates. Numerous plants and animals use textural and chemical features on their surfaces to harvest this precious resource. In this work, we investigate the influence of the surface wettability characteristics, length scale, and weave density on the fog-harvesting capability of woven meshes. We develop a combined hydrodynamic and surface wettability model to predict the overall fog-collection efficiency of the meshes and cast the findings in the form of a design chart. Two limiting surface wettability constraints govern the re-entrainment of collected droplets and clogging of mesh openings. Appropriate tuning of the wetting characteristics of the surfaces, reducing the wire radii, and optimizing the wire spacing all lead to more efficient fog collection. We use a family of coated meshes with a directed stream of fog droplets to simulate a natural foggy environment and demonstrate a five-fold enhancement in the fog-collecting eff...

A Proposed Standard Fog Collector for Use in High-Elevation Regions

Abstract: The collection of fog droplets by vegetation is an important wet deposition process. It can, in fact, dominate the chemical and hydrological input to certain high elevation watersheds. However, measurements of fog deposition are rarely made and, where they do exist, comparisons of deposition rates in different locations have been hampered by the use of innumerable types of collection devices. A simple, inexpensive, 1-m2 fog collector that can produce measurements of the deposition of fog water to a vertical surface is described here. The collector has been used successfully in five countries to investigate the variation of fog deposition in complex terrain and to estimate the deposition to trees and to much larger fog collectors. It is proposed that it be employed widely as a standard to quantify the importance of fog deposition to forested high elevation areas and to measure the potential collection rates in denuded or desert mountain ranges. The standard fog collector costs about the same as a ...