DESIGN AND FABRICATION OF PORTABLE ATMOSPHERIC WATER SEQUESTRATOR AS AN OFF-GRID WATER SYSTEM
The lack of access to clean water has been one of the major issues in water-stressed countries. In this study, the design and fabrication of a prototype portable atmospheric water sequestrator device was carried out and tested for its ability to harness available water vapor in the atmosphere. The system utilized the concept of Peltier effect in Peltier units as a new way to liquefy atmospheric water. MATLAB® was used to investigate effects of different parameters namely humidity ratio, volumetric air flow rate, and Peltier surface temperature on water generation. Results showed that humidity ratio exhibited the highest significance among the parameters. Furthermore, the highest water production was found to be 7.643 mL at a Peltier surface temperature of 4 ºC, air flowrate of 24 ft3/min, and humidity ratio of 0.021. Moreover, the physico-chemical characteristics of the water produced was well under the Philippine standards and can be classified into Public Water Supply Class I. KEYWORDS: Design and fabrication, portable water sequestrator, Peltier effect, water generation