However, material silica gel removes moisture by adsorption onto the surface of its numerous pores rather than by absorption into the bulk of the gel. Silica gel is able to adsorb up to 37% of its own weight in moisture in high-humidity environments.

Silica gel has an amorphous micro-porous structure with a distribution of pore opening sizes of roughly 3-60 angstroms. These interconnected pores form a vast surface area that will attract and hold water by adsorption and capillary condensation, allowing silica gel to adsorb up to 40% of its weight in water.

A higher moisture adsorption rate in the modified silica gel was expected. It was observed that the breakthrough curve moved to right in a constant pattern when the regeneration temperature was increased from 60 to 90 ¡ÆC. The breakthrough curves of silica gels regenerated at 80 and 90 ¡ÆC were almost coincident.

In general, silica gel can adsorb up to 40% of its weight in water vapor before it becomes fully saturated – a state known as equilibrium. However, the time it takes for the silica gel to saturate depends on the specific conditions of its use.