Phase change material enhanced sustained and energy-efficient solar-thermal water desalination

Gong, Biyao; Yang, Huachao; Wu, Shenghao; Tian, Yikuan; Yan, Jun; Cen, Kefa; Bo, Zheng; Ostrikov, Kostya Ken

doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2021.117463

Cited by 53 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…Although over 70% of the earth’s surface is covered with water, only 3% of the total water resources are vital for human sustenance . Seawater desalination and sewage treatment are regarded as two effective approaches to mitigate the global water crisis. − Traditionally, water purification techniques, such as reverse osmosis, thermal distillation, and electrodialysis, have been developed to provide a constant freshwater supply. , However, these techniques either require sophisticated infrastructures or cause enormous energy consumption . Therefore, exploring the trade-off between environment and energy to realize economical separation of freshwater and solute is of great significance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rational Design of Biomass-Derived Composite Aerogels for Solar-Driven Seawater Desalination and Sewage Treatment

Meng

Zhang

et al. 2022

Ind. Eng. Chem. Res.

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To combat the water crisis, on-site reclamation of freshwater from seawater and sewage is urgently desired, in which solar-driven interfacial evaporation has been recognized as an emerging strategy. However, potentially costly fabrication, salt accumulation, and contaminant influence still hinder the real-world application of solar−thermal evaporators. Herein, a biomassderived composite aerogel is constructed through the Schiff base reaction of chitosan and polyethylenimine and freeze assembly and further loaded with CuS/rGO nanoheterostructures via a spray stacking strategy. Because of the reverse transport of verticalchannel arrays, the lower part enables excellent salt-resistant properties during long-term desalination in parallel to upward water supply. The upper part promotes the thermal localization by controlling the spatial distribution of CuS/rGO, providing high solar spectrum absorption for efficient water evaporation. Notably, the composite aerogel exhibits great superiority in sewage treatment benefiting from its adsorption and photocatalytic capabilities, thus harvesting freshwater resources that meet drinking water standards. The rational design of this cost-effective evaporator may inspire new paradigms for boosting the combination of solar−thermal utilization and freshwater access.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rational Design of Biomass-Derived Composite Aerogels for Solar-Driven Seawater Desalination and Sewage Treatment

Meng

Zhang

et al. 2022

Ind. Eng. Chem. Res.

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“…In addition, the paraffin wax is selected with low thermal conductivity to prevent a significant drop in the top temperature and to reduce the evaporation rate. [ 32 ] However, in the case of surrounding temperature higher than material temperature, the direct contact between high and low thermally conductive materials can promote the heat absorption ability of low thermally conductive materials, making the side of 3D evaporators a good entry point. Thus, the combination of high thermally conductive SPCMs and 3D evaporators to achieve enhanced energy utilization is an intriguing subject.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The integration of phase change materials (PCMs) and evaporators has been utilized to store the thermal energy at a high solar light intensity and to release it when the light intensity is reduced, improving the comprehensive solar utilization and achieving continuous vaporization. [32][33][34] So far, the paraffin wax commonly applied generates a solid-liquid phase change, potentially leading to liquid leakage, thereby necessitating replacement with solid-solid PCMs (SPCMs). In addition, the paraffin wax is selected with low thermal conductivity to prevent a significant drop in the top temperature and to reduce the evaporation rate.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…In addition, the paraffin wax is selected with low thermal conductivity to prevent a significant drop in the top temperature and to reduce the evaporation rate. [32] However, in the case of surrounding temperature higher than material temperature, the direct contact between high and low thermally conductive materials can Solar-driven interfacial steam generation serves as an alternative strategy to alleviate the emergency of the global freshwater shortage. Compared to traditional 2D evaporators, 3D evaporators have drawn further attention for their excellent evaporation performance.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Robust and Flexible 3D Photothermal Evaporator with Heat Storage for High‐Performance Solar‐Driven Evaporation

Liang

Guo

et al. 2022

Advanced Sustainable Systems

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Solar‐driven interfacial steam generation serves as an alternative strategy to alleviate the emergency of the global freshwater shortage. Compared to traditional 2D evaporators, 3D evaporators have drawn further attention for their excellent evaporation performance. However, large volume 3D evaporators suffer from problems related to higher vulnerability to damage and less portable storage. Worse still, 3D evaporators equally behave poorly in dark conditions. Herein, a robust and flexible 3D hydrogel/fiber evaporator mounted with solid–solid phase change materials (SPCMs) for efficient photothermal desalination is reported. The hydrogel fills the spaces of fibers and not only forms a topology‐like structure to strengthen the sunlight absorption (≈0.1% optical transmittance and ≈10% reflectance), but also reinforces the mechanical strength and elasticity of the evaporator (≈4 MPa tensile strength and ≈23 MPa Young's modulus). Notably, highly thermally‐conductive SPCMs fulfill a dual function under light‐dark conditions, facilitating a 3D evaporator for absorbing energy from high‐temperature environment under daylight, and releasing latent heat to sustain evaporation when light is turned off, ultimately achieving evaporation rates of 3.80 and 0.31 kg m–2 h–1 under different conditions. Such a durable 3D hydrogel/fiber evaporator with dramatic evaporation performance opens up promising prospects for freshwater production in remote areas.

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“…Among the different types of renewable energy, solar energy has attracted research based on electrical energy, heat utilization, waste treatment, etc. Because of its universality, harmlessness, and abundance [10][11][12][13][14], which radiated to many fields based on systematic and comprehensive research.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental and simulation study on bifacial photovoltaic modules integration with buildings

et al. 2022

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Compared with monofacial photovoltaics, bifacial photovoltaic modules can absorb the irradiance on both sides, thereby obtaining more electricity revenue, which can meet more demands. In order to further improve the electrical efficiency of bifacial photovoltaics, this paper proposes a bifacial photovoltaic module with adjustable inclination for simulation and experimental research, which can be well combined with architecture. Under the conditions of different inclination, orientations and heights, the output performance of the bifacial photovoltaic module is analyzed. Under the best inclination, the annual electrical energy of bifacial photovoltaic is about 9.4% higher than that of monofacial photovoltaics. When the spacing between the bifacial photovoltaic and the wall is 1-1.5 times the size of the photovoltaic, the electrical energy will increase the most. Considering the influence of wall color on bifacial photovoltaic performance, the photovoltaic electrical energy under the white wall can reach up to 35% higher than that with respect to the concrete color (dark grey).

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Phase change material enhanced sustained and energy-efficient solar-thermal water desalination

Cited by 53 publications

References 48 publications

Rational Design of Biomass-Derived Composite Aerogels for Solar-Driven Seawater Desalination and Sewage Treatment

Rational Design of Biomass-Derived Composite Aerogels for Solar-Driven Seawater Desalination and Sewage Treatment

Robust and Flexible 3D Photothermal Evaporator with Heat Storage for High‐Performance Solar‐Driven Evaporation

Experimental and simulation study on bifacial photovoltaic modules integration with buildings

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