Zhang Songnan, Chen Yingcan, Wang Xi, Zhang Zhibin, Zhao Kaiying, Zhang Di, Li Guolong, Zhang Tong, Cheng Yan, Shi Yunlong, Huang Jianying, Qian Xiaoming, Lai Yuekun
State Key Laboratory of Separation Membranes and Membrane Processes/National Center for International Joint Research on Separation Membranes, School of Textile Science and Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin, 300387, P. R. China.
Jiangxi Center for Modern Apparel Engineering and Technology, Jiangxi Institute of Fashion Technology, Nanchang, 330201, P. R. China.
Small. 2025 Jan;21(2):e2312278. doi: 10.1002/smll.202312278. Epub 2024 Nov 26.
The conversion of solar energy into heat for seawater desalination is emerging as a promising method. However, it requires further research on light absorption, thermal management, and salt deposition to improve water evaporation rates. This study introduces a 3D solar evaporator inspired by jellyfish utilizing honeycomb fabric (HF), which capitalizes on a synergistic effect between the periodically arranged concave unit structure and the Chinese ink and carbon black particles (ink@CB), achieving up to 98% light absorption with ink@CB-HF. Additionally, the insulating foam effectively separates the evaporating layer from the bulk water, thereby significantly reduces heat loss. Furthermore, the water transport channel and evaporation layer prepared by the hydrophilic flax yarns facilitate ion exchange and water transport, preventing salt accumulation in the photothermal layer during the evaporation. The results demonstrate that the evaporator exhibits an excellent evaporation rate of 1.854 kg m h and a high conversion efficiency of up to 92.2% under 1 sun illumination. It maintains efficient evaporation even under low sunlight or high ion concentration conditions. Notably, the ink@CB-HF-foam sustains its stability throughout 15 evaporation cycles. This work provides a new approach to design cost-effective, highly efficient, and durable solar evaporators for seawater desalination.
将太阳能转化为热能用于海水淡化正成为一种很有前景的方法。然而，要提高水蒸发速率，还需要在光吸收、热管理和盐分沉积方面进行进一步研究。本研究介绍了一种受水母启发、利用蜂窝织物（HF）的三维太阳能蒸发器，它利用周期性排列的凹形单元结构与中国墨汁和炭黑颗粒（ink@CB）之间的协同效应，ink@CB-HF的光吸收率高达98%。此外，隔热泡沫有效地将蒸发层与大量水体隔开，从而显著减少热损失。此外，由亲水性亚麻纱线制备的输水通道和蒸发层促进了离子交换和水的传输，防止了蒸发过程中盐分在光热层的积累。结果表明，该蒸发器在1个太阳光照下表现出1.854 kg m h的优异蒸发速率和高达92.2%的高转换效率。即使在低光照或高离子浓度条件下，它也能保持高效蒸发。值得注意的是，ink@CB-HF-泡沫在15个蒸发循环中都保持了稳定性。这项工作为设计用于海水淡化的经济高效且耐用的太阳能蒸发器提供了一种新方法。
