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Farming on the Ocean via Desalination (FOOD).

Yue BianYan TengSi ChenKun TangLijuan ZhaoLan FuShulin Gu
Published in: Environmental science & technology (2023)
Today, agricultural irrigation consumes the largest amount of freshwater globally, while humans are threatened by water scarcity. To eliminate the trade-off between hunger and thirst, here, we show off-grid maritime agriculture based on a floating solar-driven agro-desalination wooden dome. In this dome, part of the visible light is transmitted for photosynthesis, and the remaining solar energy drives solar desalination, providing enough water (>4 mm day -1 ) for irrigation. Based on this water-food synergy, the stages of germination and growth are demonstrated. This technology can, to a large extent, support food security and sustainable agriculture and, in principle, be used to create self-circulation systems at sea to help humans survive weather extremes such as floods and droughts.
Keyphrases
  • climate change
  • human health
  • visible light
  • risk assessment
  • heavy metals
  • public health
  • global health