Engineering a superhydrophilic TiC/C absorber with multiscale pore network for stable and efficient solar evaporation of high-salinity brine

Global energy and environmental problems are becoming increasingly prominent, and the shortage of freshwater resources has been plaguing many countries and regions in the world. Solar steam generation (SSG) has emerged as a green, low‐cost and efficient strategy for freshwater production, which has attracted enormous attention in recent years. Furthermore, various photothermal materials and structural designs for the preparation of efficient SSG systems have been widely reported. Among them, metal‐based photothermal materials are abundant, and the exploration on metal‐based SSG systems is one of the important research directions. In this review, the basic concepts and design objectives of current metal‐based SSG systems are first introduced, as well as advances in the recent development of metal‐based photothermal materials, including photothermal mechanisms, and preparation methods. The evaluation criteria of the SSG system are further described. Then the development of metal‐based SSG systems is summarized in terms of structural design, functional modules (light absorption, thermal management, water transport, salt rejection, etc.), and potential applications (wastewater treatment, sterilization and other fields). Finally, the main challenges and future prospects of metal‐based SSG systems in basic research and practical applications are emphasized.

Section: Promoting the Redissolution Of Saltmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent Advances and Challenges of Metal‐Based Materials for Solar Steam Generation

Yu,

Zhang,

Wang

et al. 2023

Phase‐Separated Polyzwitterionic Hydrogels with Tunable Sponge‐Like Structures for Stable Solar Steam Generation

Peng

Lyu

et al. 2023

Solar steam generation (SSG) through hydrogel-based evaporators has shown great promise for freshwater production. However, developing hydrogelbased evaporators with stable SSG performance in high-salinity brines remains challenging. Herein, phase-separated polyzwitterionic hydrogelbased evaporators are presented with sponge-like structures comprising interconnected pores for stable SSG performance, which are fabricated by photopolymerization of sulfobetaine methacrylate (SBMA) in water-dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) mixed solvents. It is shown that driven by competitive adsorption, the structures of the resulting poly(sulfobetaine methacrylate) (PSBMA) hydrogels can be readily tuned by the volume ratio of DMSO to achieve phase separation. The optimized phase-separated PSBMA hydrogels, combining the unique anti-polyelectrolyte effects of polyzwitterionic hydrogels, demonstrate a rapid water transport capability in brines. After introducing photothermal polypyrrole particles on the surface of the phaseseparated PSBMA hydrogel evaporators, a stable water evaporation rate of ≈2.024 kg m −2 h −1 and high solar-to-vapor efficiency of ≈97.5% in a 3.5 wt.% brine are obtained under simulated solar light irradiation (1.0 kW m −2 ). Surprisingly, the evaporation rates remain stable even under high-intensity solar irradiation (2.0 kW m −2 ). It is anticipated that the polyzwitterionic hydrogel evaporators with sponge-like porous structures will contribute to developing SSG technology for high-salinity seawater applications.

Dielectric‐Based Metamaterials for Near‐Perfect Light Absorption

Wang,

Qin,

Duan

et al. 2024

The emergence of metamaterials and their continued prosperity have built a powerful working platform for accurately manipulating the behavior of electromagnetic waves, providing sufficient possibility for the realization of metamaterial absorbers with outstanding performance. However, metamaterial absorbers composed of metallic materials typically possess many unfavorable factors, such as non‐adjustable absorption, easy oxidation, low‐melting, and expensive preparation costs. The selection of dielectric materials provides excellent alternatives due to their remarkable properties, thus dielectric‐based metamaterial absorbers (DBMAs) have attracted much attention. To promote breakthroughs in DBMAs and guide their future development, this work systematically and deeply reviews the recent research progress of DBMAs from four different but progressive aspects, including physical principles; classifications, material selections and tunable properties; preparation technologies; and functional applications. Five different types of theories and related physical mechanisms, such as Mie resonance, guided‐mode resonance, and Anapole resonance, are briefly outlined to explain DBMAs having near‐perfect absorption performance. Mainstream material selections, structure designs, and different types of tunable DBMAs are highlighted. Several widely utilized preparation methods for customizing DBMAs are given. Various practical applications of DBMAs in sensing, stealth technology, solar energy absorption, and electromagnetic interference suppression are reviewed. Finally, some key challenges and feasible solutions for DBMAs’ future development are provided.