Superhydrophobic Bulgy Windmill for Synchronous Efficient Fog Collection and Power Generation

The shortage of freshwater resources is a serious problem faced by mankind in the 21st century. To maximize the acquisition of freshwater resources, numerous fog collectors have been constructed. In the process of fog collection accompanied by the movement of the wind, the mechanical energy brought about by the wind is often ignored. Based on this, inspired by beetles and origami art, we designed a windmill installation with a bump on the edge. Droplets nucleate at the windmill bulge and accelerate the transport process under the action of centrifugal force. This leads to quick fog collection and reduces the secondary evaporation rate of freshwater resources. The fog collection efficiency can reach 2.8 times that of the original sample. Moreover, the windmill can convert mechanical energy into electricity while collecting fog, and the operating voltage of a single windmill can reach 0.85 V. After the array, the amount of fog collected by the windmill and the power generation voltage can be increased by multiple times, which realizes the efficient use of energy and provides a new idea for the design of an efficient fog collector in the future.