Porous TiNO solar-driven interfacial evaporator for high-efficiency seawater desalination

Freshwater scarcity, one of the most serious global challenges, has threatened the development of society in many regions. Solar-driven interfacial evaporation localizing solar-to-thermal energy conversion at the vapor–liquid interface provides a new approach for seawater desalination. In this work, we reported a high-efficiency porous TiNO solar absorber for a solar-driven interfacial evaporation system. The solar absorber was prepared by depositing a solar absorbing coating of TiNO on air-laid paper. Hydrophilicity and porosity of the absorber provide sufficient capillary force to absorb water to the evaporation region, thus resulting in rapid replenishment of water and simultaneously avoiding salt precipitation. Based on the TiNO solar absorber, the interfacial evaporation system achieves a high evaporation rate of 1.33 kg m−2 h−1 with an evaporation efficiency of 84.05% under 1 sun illumination and has good durability under long-time solar irradiation. Such a low-cost, high-efficiency solar-driven seawater desalination system holds the potential for rapid deployment in remote areas or isolated islands to collect freshwater.