March 16, 2023
Keio University
University of Fukui
RIKEN
Water is one of our most important resources. To ensure the future sustainability of life, countries around the world are developing technologies to freely control water transport. A research group consisting of Associate Professor Norimitsu Arai, Senior Assistant Professor Eiji Yamamoto, and Professor Kenji Yasuoka from the Keio University Faculty of Science and Technology; Project Associate Professor Hidenori Hirano from the university's Graduate School of Science and Technology; Associate Professor Takahiro Koishi from the University of Fukui's Faculty of Engineering; and Shunichi Ebisuzaki, a principal investigator at the Ebisuzaki Computational Astrophysics Laboratory, RIKEN Cluster for Pioneering Research, has proposed a new molecular-scale water transport method through computer simulations. This method features a novel mechanism that realizes the principle of a heat pump, used in air conditioners and other devices, at the nanoscale.
In recent years, bio-inspired functional materials have been attracting attention due to their high energy efficiency. The water transport method proposed in this study shows similarities to water transport in our bodies and may capture its essence. Furthermore, as it is a system equivalent to the reverse Carnot cycle—theoretically the most energy-efficient cycle for a heat pump—it is expected to enable the realization of an ultra-low energy system, similar to those found in the body.
The results of this research were published in the Royal Society of Chemistry journal Nanoscale Horizons on March 8, 2023 (local time).
For the full press release, please see below.