AI Article Synopsis
- Photothermal membrane distillation (MD) is a new approach to desalination and water purification, but traditional solar thermal methods struggle with low energy efficiency and membrane fouling.
- The study introduces a novel solar vapour gap membrane distillation (SVGMD) method that enhances water transport and heating through a specially designed graphene array, achieving a solar-water efficiency of 73.4% and a high clean water collection ratio of 82.3%.
- SVGMD shows impressive performance over 72 hours by preventing fouling and effectively removing microorganisms, making it 3.5 times more efficient than existing solar vapour systems, and is capable of treating oil/seawater mixtures under sunlight.
Article Abstract
Photothermal membrane distillation (MD) is a promising technology for desalination and water purification. However, solar-thermal conversion suffers from low energy efficiency (a typical solar-water efficiency of ~ 50%), while complex modifications are needed to reduce membrane fouling. Here, we demonstrate a new concept of solar vapour gap membrane distillation (SVGMD) synergistically combining self-guided water transport, localized heating, and separation of membrane from feed solution. A free-standing, multifunctional light absorber based on graphene array is custom-designed to locally heat the thin water layer transporting through graphene nanochannels. The as-generated vapour passes through a gap and condenses, while salt/contaminants are rejected before reaching the membrane. The high solar-water efficiency (73.4% at 1 sun), clean water collection ratio (82.3%), excellent anti-fouling performance, and stable permeate flux in continuous operation over 72 h are simultaneously achieved. Meanwhile, SVGMD inherits the advantage of MD in microorganism removal and water collection, enabling the solar-water efficiency 3.5 times higher compared to state-of-the-art solar vapour systems. A scaled system to treat oil/seawater mixtures under natural sunlight is developed with a purified water yield of 92.8 kg m day. Our results can be applied for diverse mixed-phase feeds, leading to the next-generation solar-driven MD technology.
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|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7770882 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s40820-019-0281-1 | DOI Listing |
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