Atmospheric moisture is potentially a valuable renewable
water resource. The atmosphere surrounding the earth contains
over 12.9 10
12
m
3
of renewable water (Gleick, 1996). This paper
investigates the likelihood of extending the productivity of RHTs
beyond rain events by condensing water vapor that is naturally
available in the atmosphere to standard freshwater via a dehumidification
process (Fig. 1). By passing the moist air through a
dehumidification system and cooling it to a certain level, the
exiting cooled air would leave behind part of its moisture content
which might be converted to liquid water and added to RHTs. The
freshwater yield of this technique could be added to rain productivity
aiming to secure household’s demand of freshwater.