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Biomass constructing double-layer 3D solar evaporator for highly-efficient seawater desalination and wastewater treatment
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Researchers built a solar-powered water evaporator using entirely plant-based materials that achieved a 96.4% energy efficiency and could purify seawater at a rate of 3.31 kilograms per square meter per hour. The device effectively removed salt, heavy metals, organic dyes, and other pollutants from contaminated water. The study presents a sustainable, low-cost approach to both seawater desalination and wastewater treatment using renewable biomass materials.
Inspired by plant transpiration, a high-performance double-layer 3D solar evaporator is directly constructed using all biomasses. The unique porous structures endow the evaporator with extremely high solar efficiency of 96.4 % and seawater evaporation rate of 3.31 kg m −2 h −1 under 1 Sun, as well as a strong removal ability in salt/heavy metal ions, organic dyestuffs and acid/alkali substances. • The double-layer 3D evaporator is constructed using renewable natural biomasses. • The evaporator can reache a stable evaporation rate of 3.31 kg m −2 h −1 for seawater. • Microvillus-form structures is unique for ion removal and anti-salt accumulation. • This strategy shows a sustainable and green way for preparing solar evaporators. 3D solar-driven evaporator with high efficiency and good thermal management, is a promising strategy for solving freshwater shortage. However, its practical application is vitally restricted by the utilization of non-degradable polymers and expensive photothermal materials, as well as the pollutions of waste-plastics and microplastics. Herein, inspired by plant transpiration, biomasses of starch, cuttlefish ink, sodium alginate, and bamboo are used to greenly construct a high-performance double-layer 3D evaporator. Therein, a bamboo obtained from water-assisted carbonization, with strong solar-conversion and hydrophilicity, serves as the shell to supply heat and pump water continuously. The core layer, a dual-crosslinked starch-based hydrogel, consisting of plentiful micro-nano-sized pores with rich microvilli inside, exhibits outstanding properties in hydrophilicity, photothermal conversion and purification effect. Such 3D structure significantly reduces heat loss and improves water transporting and purifying efficiency. This evaporator performs extremely high solar efficiency of 96.4 % and seawater evaporation rate of 3.31 kg m −2 h −1 under 1 Sun, and affects little by super-high salinity and long-time usage. Meanwhile, it maintains excellent removal rate to salt/heavy metal ions, organic dyestuffs and acid/alkali substances. This study provides an instructive strategy for the cost-effective and sustainable fabrication of high-efficiency 3D solar-driven evaporator using only cheap and renewable biomass resources.
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Researchers developed a dual-functional solar evaporator by assembling PEI-coated viscose fibers and hydrophilic cotton fabric that simultaneously achieves microplastic adsorption and seawater desalination through photothermal evaporation, overcoming the single-function limitation of traditional water treatment evaporators.
Dual-Functional Evaporator: Synergistic Seawater Purification via Photothermal Evaporation and Microplastic Adsorption
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A novel solar-powered device tackles two pressing problems at once: freshwater scarcity and microplastic contamination in water. The evaporator uses sunlight to generate steam for desalination while a specially coated fiber layer adsorbs microplastics from the water before it evaporates — achieving 99.2% microplastic removal efficiency and a strong evaporation rate. Because the steam produced contains no microplastics, the design elegantly separates clean water production from plastic capture in a single low-energy system.
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Researchers developed a plant-inspired device that uses solar energy to simultaneously produce fresh water, recover clean salt, and generate electricity from seawater. The system includes a built-in pollutant capture trap that removes contaminants including microplastics and persistent organic pollutants from the recovered salt. This innovative approach to resource recovery from seawater could help address water scarcity while preventing microplastic contamination in salt products.
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