Multifunctional hydrophilic MXene/Gelatin composite aerogel with vertically aligned channels for efficient sustainable solar water evaporation and Oil/Water separation

SCG-Based CNF Aerogels with Oriented and Aligned Porous Structure for Solar Interfacial Desalination

“…According to literatures, the vertical channels inside aerogel provide fast track of the salt diffusion, which can effectively prevent the pores from clogging and maintain the evaporation rate. 23 Herein, 1.5 g of NaCl is sprinkled on the top of four aerogels. After leaving them under real sunlight for 3 h, all the white powders are disappeared (Figure S7).…”

“…The salt resistance is another important index for desalination. According to literatures, the vertical channels inside aerogel provide fast track of the salt diffusion, which can effectively prevent the pores from clogging and maintain the evaporation rate . Herein, 1.5 g of NaCl is sprinkled on the top of four aerogels.…”

“…Comparing with other methods, directional freezing technology is an effective approach to create the vertically biomimetic aligned channels for aerogels by the ice template . These vertically arranged pores array can accelerate water transportation and contribute to the rapid diffusion of salt which can keep patency of channels …”

“…22 accelerate water transportation and contribute to the rapid diffusion of salt which can keep patency of channels. 23 Yu and Wu 15 mixed PVA with MXene and formed aerogels for desalination via directional freezing method. The directional aerogel has higher light absorption capability (97%) and seawater evaporation rate (2.710 kg•m −2 •h −1 ) due to its directionally aligned channel structure, and the results of nondirectional sample were only 95% and 2.200 kg•m −2 •h −1 , respectively.…”

Wood-inspired polypyrrole/cellulose aerogels with vertically aligned channels prepared by facile freeze-casting for efficient interfacial solar evaporation

“…It has been reported that vertical channels such as wood structures are benecial for fast water transport due to shorter water pathways, which could not only favor sufficient water delivery and vapor escape but also alleviate salt accumulation by speeding up the migration of salt ions. 6,18,29,30 Furthermore, hydrophilic functional groups in materials exhibit interaction with water molecules, which could change the water states in the porous structure and disturb hydrogen bonding among water molecules, thus decreasing the evaporation enthalpy. 7,31,32 Lower energy demand for evaporation leads to a higher evaporation rate with the same energy input.…”