Biomimetic Antigravity Water Transport and Remote Harvesting Powered by Sunlight

Abstract

conversion. Equally important, we demonstrate that the evaporative cooling and sufficient interfacial heat exchange can yield water steam collection in a high efficiency, finishing a complete water transport-evaporation-recollection cycle. 2. Results and Discussion 2.1. Synthesis and Characterization of the Artificial Tree

Recent developments of hydrogel based solar water purification technology

“…33 It is noted that a solar water purification system containing reduced graphene oxide (rGO) generally exhibits a relatively high evaporation rate (2.33–2.72 kg m −2 h −1 ) and higher energy conversion efficiency (>90%) compared to the systems based on graphene and graphene oxide (GO). 59,63,74,77,102–119 This result may be attributed to the residual functional groups ( i.e. epoxy, hydroxyl) on the surface of rGO, which can be further investigated.…”

“…33 It is noted that a solar water purification system containing reduced graphene oxide (rGO) generally exhibits a relatively high evaporation rate (2.33 -2.72 kg m -2 h -1 ) and higher energy conversion efficiency ( > 90%) compared to the systems based on graphene and graphene oxide (GO). 59,63,74,77,[102][103][104][105][106][107][108][109][110][111][112][113][114][115][116][117][118][119] This result may be attributed to the residual As the youngest carbon nanomaterials, carbon dots (CDs) [132][133][134] have attracted attention due to their broad light absorption spectrum (200-800 nm) and high photothermal conversion efficiency (> 90%), so that CDs can meet the requirements of solar absorbers. 135 To further improve the performance of CDs for solar water purification, future development directions include structure adjustment and surface group modification without lowering crystallinity or wetting properties.…”

“…Carbon-based materials have been used as solar absorbers in various studies in recent years, owing to their excellent light absorption over a broad spectrum, ease of preparation, abundance and low cost. Carbon-based materials include activated carbon, 83–86 polymer 76,87–90 or biomass 82,91–95 derived carbide, carbon black 96–101 and various amorphous carbon materials and highly graphitized carbon materials, such as graphene, 56,59,63,74,77,102–122 carbon nanotubes (CNTs) 27,123–130 and their derivatives.…”

Super Water-Storage Self-Adhesive Gel for Solar Vapor Generation and Collection

“…Up to date, the evaporation rate of the solar desalination can reach up to 4.12 kg·m –2 ·h –1 with an evaporation efficiency higher than 90% . As a result, solar water evaporation devices has been extended to water harvesting, , purification, , desalination, and so on . However, most of the previous studies focus on the materials and structures of solar water evaporator to enhance the solar energy harvesting efficiency and the evaporation rate of water instead considering the water collection and storage in the evaporation system, which is not beneficial to the whole hydrological cycle , because the clean water is not used where it produced, but it should be transported to where it is needed.…”

A bioinspired solar evaporator with a horizontal channel-like framework for efficient and stable high-salinity brine desalination

“…[15][16][17][18][19][20][21] For many materials, water transport paths are in the vertical direc-tion to ensure adequate water supply. [22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30] However, high water flux in the vertical direction causes heat loss to the bulk water, which severely decreases the evaporation rate. 31 Additionally, when the evaporator is applied for treating brine in practical implementation, the salt accumulation on the evaporation surface reduces the light absorption and clogs the liquid transport and vapor release pathways.…”