Experimental Investigation of a Sorption-Based Atmospheric Water Harvesting System Using MIL-100(Fe) in a Fin-And-Flat-Tube Heat Exchanger

Sorption-based atmospheric water harvesting is often evaluated using small equilibrium samples, whereas the response of a packed adsorber is governed by coupled thermal and mass-transfer effects. This work investigates MIL-100(Fe), in an aluminum fin-and-flat-tube heat exchanger containing 130 g of dry sorbent. Thermodynamic and dynamic aspects are evaluated, in order to evaluate the harvesting potential of the MOF on a relevant scale. The characteristic time to complete the adsorption process is evaluated, and values between 11 and 22 min were identified for an adsorption temperature of 30 °C and desorption temperatures between 70 °C and 90 °C, with air velocity as the main parameter affecting the performance. The achieved results demonstrate the feasibility in practical applications of a large-scale MOF-packed heat exchanger with fast dynamics, compatible with >10 cycles per day.