Use of condensed water from air conditioning equipment as a strategy to face the global scarcity of freshwater: a review

Authors

  • Adilson Celimar Dalmora Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS)
  • Matheus da Silva Civeira Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS)
  • Samuel do Nascimento de Campos Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul
  • Hugo Gaspar Hernández Palma Corporación Unificada Nacional de Educación Superior (CUN)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17981/ladee.03.02.2022.4

Keywords:

Condensed water recovery, water reuse, sustainable use of water, sustainable development

Abstract

Introduction: The increase in the world’s demand for water has become one of the most relevant topics on environmental sustainability and the conservation of water resources. As a result of the scarcity of potable water, processes such as the use of water through practices, techniques, and technologies for its efficient use have become essential for future generations. Among the possibilities for using water, air conditioning systems stand out, due to the formation of condensed water during operation. The world’s population is increasingly concerned about environmental issues, showing that it is necessary to seek alternatives to recycle water, whether for use in gardening, sewage systems, washing sidewalks, and cars, among others. The present study carried out a review of primary articles published in the Scopus and Web of Science databases between the years 2013 to 2022. The terms used for the search were water reuse, condensed water, and air conditioning. Objetive: The objective of this literature review was to reflect on the theme of reuse of condensation water from air conditioners, raise awareness and preserve, pointing to the waste of water from air conditioners. It is important to point out that the potability parameters for the reuse of this water must be determined, aiming at a proposal for its use. In addition, physical-chemical and bacteriological analyzes are essential to define the classification of use of condensed water. This strategy for the sustainable use of water resources can generate savings of up to 100% in water consumption in medium and large enterprises, such as shopping malls and industries, and enhance the future of planet Earth.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Abdullah, M. A. & Mursalin, R. (2021). Condensed water recycling in an air conditioning unit. IOSR Journal of Mechanical and Civil Engineering (IOSR-JMCE), 18(3), 13–19. https://www.iosrjournals.org/iosr-jmce/papers/vol18-issue3/Series-2/B1803021319.pdf

Al-Farayedhi, A. A., Ibrahim, N. I. & Gandhidasan, P. (2014). Condensate as a water source from vapor compression systems in hot and humid regions. Desalination, 349, 60–67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2014.05.002

Algarni, S., Saleel, C. & Mujeebu, M. A. (2018). Air-conditioning condensate recovery and applications—Current developments and challenges ahead. Sustainable Cities and Society, 37, 263–274. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2017.11.032

Arden, S., Morelli, B., Cashman, S., Ma, X., Jahne, M. & Garland, J. (2020). Onsite Non-potable Reuse for Large Buildings: Environmental and Economic Suitability as a Function of Building Characteristics and Location. Water Research, 191, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2020.116635

Barbosa, T. & Coelho, L. (2016). Sustentabilidade por meio do reúso da água dos aparelhos de arcondicionado da Faculdade de Tecnologia Deputado Waldyr Alceu Trigo – FATEC Sertãozinho. Revista Academus, São Paulo, 4(1), 1–10.

Bastos, C. & Calmon, J. (2011). Uso de água residual do ar condicionado e de agua pluvial como gestão da oferta em uma edificação comercial: estudo de caso. Habitat Sustentable, 3(2), 66–74. https://revistas.ubiobio.cl/index.php/RHS/article/view/436

Bergmair, D. (2015). Design of a system for humidity harvesting using water vapor selective membranes [Phd Thesis, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven]. TU/e. https://pure.tue.nl/ws/portalfiles/portal/3860479/789938.pdf

Bergmair, D., Metz, S. J., De Lange, H. C. & Van Steenhoven, A. A. (2014). System analysis of membrane facilitated water generation from air humidity. Desalination, 339, 26–33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2014.02.007

Beysens, D., Clus, O., Mileta, M., Milimouk, I., Muselli, M. & Nikolayev, V. S. (2007). Collecting dew as a water source on small islands: the dew equipment for water project in Bis˘ evo (Croatia). Energy, 32(6), 1032–1037. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2006.09.021

Bui, D. T., Nida, A., Ng, K. C. & Chua, K. J. (2016). Water vapor permeation and dehumidification performance of poly (vinyl alcohol)/lithium chloride composite membranes. Journal of Membrane Science, 498, 254–262. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.memsci.2015.10.021

Bui, T. D., Wong, Y., Thu, K., Oh, S. J., Kum Ja, M., Ng, K. C., Raisul, I. & Chua, K. J. (2017). Effect of hygroscopic materials on water vapor permeation and dehumidification performance of poly (vinyl alcohol) membranes. Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 134(17), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1002/app.44765

Cattani, L., Magrini, A. & Cattani, P. (2018). Water Extraction from Air by Refrigeration—Experimental Results from an Integrated System Application. Applied Sciences, 8, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.3390/app8112262

Cuviella-Suárez, C., Colmenar-Santos, A., Borge-Diez, D. & López-Rey, Á. (2021). Reduction of water and energy consumption in the sanitary ware industry by an absorption machine operated with recovered heat. Journal of Cleaner Production, 292, 126049. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.126049

Dalai, P., Nanda, P., Mund, C., Mishra, D. & Gupta, A. (2017). An experimental study on water harvesting from a modified window air-conditioner. Energy Procedia, 109, 253–260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2017.03.058

De Souza, N. L. & Cordeiro, L. F. (2022). Use of Water from Air Conditioning Equipment for Non-Drinking Purposes: A Case Study at the Federal Institute of Pernambuco-Campus Afogados da Ingazeira. International Journal of Advanced Engineering Research and Science, 9(11), 472– 482. https://dx.doi.org/10.22161/ijaers.911.56

Eades, W. G. (2018). Energy and water recovery using air-handling unit condensate from laboratory HVAC systems. Sustainable Cities and Society, 42, 162–175. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2018.07.006

Ghimire, S. R., Johnston, J. M., Garland, J., Edelen, A., Ma, X. C. & Jahne, M. (2019). Life cycle assessment of a rainwater harvesting system compared with an AC condensate harvesting system. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 146, 536–548. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.01.043

Gido, B., Friedler, E. & Broday, D. M. (2016). Liquid-desiccant vapor separation reduces the energy requirements of atmospheric moisture harvesting. Environmental Science & Technology, 50(15), 8362–8367. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.6b01280

Gürsoy, M., Harris, M. T., Carletto, A., Yaprak, A. E., Karaman, M. & Badyal, J. P. S. (2017). Bioinspired asymmetric-anisotropic (directional) fog harvesting based on the arid climate plant Eremopyrum orientale. Colloids and surfaces a: physicochemical and engineering aspects, 529, 959–965. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2017.06.065

Gürsoy, M., Harris, M. T., Downing, J. O., Barrientos-Palomo, S. N., Carletto, A., Yaprak, A. E., Karaman, M. & Badyal, J. P. S. (2017). Bioinspired fog capture and channel mechanism based on the arid climate plant Salsola crassa. Colloids and surfaces a: physicochemical and engineering aspects, 529, 195–202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2017.05.071

Hermes, J. (2013, January 15). Air Conditioning Condensate Recovery. Environment + Energy LEADER. https://www.environmentalleader.com/2013/01/air-conditioning-condensate-recovery

Joshi, V. P., Joshi, V. S., Kothari, H. A., Mahajan, M. D., Chaudhari, M. B. & Sant, K. D. (2017). Experimental investigations on a portable fresh water generator using a thermoelectric cooler. Energy Procedia, 109, 161–166. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2017.03.085

Kim, H., Yang, S., Rao, S. R., Narayanan, S., Kapustin, E. A., Furukawa, H., Umans, A. S., Yaghi, O. M. & Wang, E. N. (2017). Water harvesting from air with metal-organic frameworks powered by natural sunlight. Science, 356(6336), 430–434. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aam8743

Kumar, M. & Yadav, A. (2015). Experimental investigation of solar powered water production from atmospheric air by using composite desiccant material “CaCl2/saw wood”. Desalination, 367, 216–222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2015.04.009

Lawrence, T., Perry, J. & Dempsey, P. (2010). Capturing condensate by retrofitting AHUs. ASHRAE Journal, 52(1), 48–54. https://technologyportal.ashrae.org/Journal/ArticleDetail/957

Liu, S., He, W., Hu, D., Lv, S., Chen, D., Wu, X., Xu, F. & Li, S. (2017). Experimental analysis of a portable atmospheric water generator by thermoelectric cooling method. Energy Procedia, 142, 1609–1614. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2017.12.538

Loveless, K.J., Farooq, A. & Ghaffour, N. (2013). Collection of condensate water: Global potential and water quality impacts. Water Resources Management, 27(5), 1351–1361. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-012-0241-8

Magrini, A., Cattani, L., Cartesegna, M. & Magnani, L. (2015a). Production of water from the air: The environmental sustainability of air-conditioning systems through a more intelligent use of resources. The advantages of an integrated system. Energy Procedia, 78, 1153–1158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2015.11.081

Magrini, A., Cattani, L., Cartesegna, M. & Magnani, L. (2015b). Integrated Systems for Air Conditioning and Production of Drinking Water – Preliminary Considerations. Energy Procedia, 75, 1659–1665. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2015.07.406

Magrini, A., Cattani, L., Cartesegna, M. & Magnani, L. (2017). Water Production from Air Conditioning Systems: Some Evaluations about a Sustainable use of Resources. Sustainability, 9, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9081309

Mahvi, A. H., Alipour, V. & Rezaei, L. (2013). Atmospheric moisture condensation to water recovery by home air conditioners. American Journal of Applied Sciences, 10(8), 917–923. https://doi.org/10.3844/ajassp.2013.917.923

Milani, D., Qadir, A., Vassallo, A., Chiesa, M. & Abbas, A. (2014). Experimentally validated model for atmospheric water generation using a solar assisted desiccant dehumidification system. Energy Building, 77, 236–246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2014.03.041

Park, K.-C., Kim, P., Grinthal, A., He, N., Fox, D., Weaver, J. C. & Aizenberg, J. (2016). Condensation on slippery asymmetric bumps. Nature, 531(7592), 78–82. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature16956

Raveesh, G., Goyal, R., & Tyagi, S. K. (2023). Parametric analysis of atmospheric water generation system and its viability in Indian cities. Thermal Science and Engineering Progress, 39, 101682. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsep.2023.101682

Scalize, P. S., Soares, S., Alves, A. C., Marques, T., Mesquita, G. G., Ballaminut, N. & Albuquerque, A. C. (2018) Use of condensed water from air conditioning systems. Open Engineering, 8(1), 284–292. https://doi.org/10.1515/eng-2018-0031

Shang, L., Fu, F., Cheng, Y., Yu, Y., Wang, J., Gu, Z. & Zhao, Y. (2017). Bioinspired multifunctional spindle-knotted microfibers from microfluidics. Small, 13(4), 1600286. https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.201600286

Siam, L., Al-Khatib, I. A., Anayah, F., Jodeh, S., Hanbali, G., Khalaf, B. & Deghles, A. (2019). Developing a strategy to recover condensate water from air conditioners in Palestine. Water, 11(8), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.3390/w11081696

Tan, Y. Z., Han, L., Chew, N.G.P., Chow, W.H., Wang, R. & Chew, J. W. (2018). Membrane distillation hybridized with a thermoelectric heat pump for energy-efficient water treatment and space cooling. Applied Energy, 231, 1079–1088. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2018.09.196

Tu, R. & Hwang, Y. (2019). Performance analyses of a new system for water harvesting from moist air that combines multi-stage desiccant wheels and vapor compression cycles. Energy Conversion and Management, 198, 111811. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2019.111811

William, G. E., Mohamed, M. H. & Fatouh, M. (2015). Desiccant system for water production from humid air using solar energy. Energy, 90, 1707–1720. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2015.06.125

Woods, J. (2014). Membrane processes for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 33, 290–304. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2014.01.092

Yin, Y., Qian, J. & Zhang, X. (2014). Recent advancements in liquid desiccant dehumidification technology. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 31, 38–52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2013.11.021

Zhang, S., Huang, J., Chen, Z. & Lai, Y. (2017). Bioinspired special wettability surfaces: from fundamental research to water harvesting applications. Small, 13(3), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.201602992

Zheng, Y., Bai, H., Huang, Z., Tian, X., Nie, F. Q., Zhao, Y., Zhai, J. & Jiang, L. (2010). Directional water collection on wetted spider silk. Nature, 463(7281), 640–643. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature08729

Downloads

Published

2022-12-28

How to Cite

Dalmora, A. C. ., da Silva Civeira, M. ., do Nascimento de Campos, S. ., & Hernández Palma, H. G. . (2022). Use of condensed water from air conditioning equipment as a strategy to face the global scarcity of freshwater: a review. LADEe Latin American Developments in Energy Engineering, 3(2), 35–46. https://doi.org/10.17981/ladee.03.02.2022.4

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 2 (2022): Julio- Diciembre

Section

Artículos

License

You are free to:

  1. Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
  2. The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:

  1. Attribution — You must give appropriate credit , provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made . You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
  2. NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes .
  3. NoDerivatives — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.
  4. No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.