Researchers Develop Higher-Efficiency Water Heater

Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Florida have created a new method that could effectively produce a lower-cost, higher-efficiency system for water heating in residential buildings. 

The report published in Renewable Energy: An International Journal, explains the "semi-open" natural gas-fired design reduces the cost and complexity of traditional closed gas-fired systems by streamlining the process. 

The new concept combines both heating and dehumidification abilities, processes usually found in separate structures. By having capabilities of both closed and open sorption systems, it can pull water vapor directly from the air through a membrane into a liquid solution and then absorb the vapor to transfer it to hot water. 

To learn more about the new system, please click here.