IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/appene/v195y2017icp414-425.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Solar steam generation through bio-inspired interface heating of broadband-absorbing plasmonic membranes

Author

Listed:
  • Wang, Xinzhi
  • He, Yurong
  • Liu, Xing
  • Cheng, Gong
  • Zhu, Jiaqi

Abstract

Efficient solar-enabled evaporation plays a critical role in solar power-based concentration systems, photochemical plants, seawater desalination technologies, etc. However, traditional processes for solar steam generation usually depend on high-temperature heating of the bulk liquid, which requires highly concentrated solar power and suffers from high energy and optical losses. Therefore, the enhancement of solar steam generation by bio-inspired interface solar heating is proposed in this work. In this study, easy-to-prepare, flexible, and reusable plasmonic membranes (PMs) were fabricated for realizing the bio-inspired interface solar heating and continuous steam transportation through the micropores of the membranes. A solar steam generation efficiency of ∼85% was achieved at an illumination power of 10kWm−2. The effects of Au concentration in the membranes and optical power on the steam generation efficiency were systemically studied. The observed high evaporation rate and efficiency were attributed to three main factors: high (∼90%) and broadband solar absorption, efficient photo-thermal conversion due to high plasmon dissipation losses, and fast capillary flow in the membrane micropores. Finally, the application of PMs in a single basin solar still system for seawater desalination was investigated and the PMs exhibited great performance on enhancing the productivity of clean water.

Suggested Citation

  • Wang, Xinzhi & He, Yurong & Liu, Xing & Cheng, Gong & Zhu, Jiaqi, 2017. "Solar steam generation through bio-inspired interface heating of broadband-absorbing plasmonic membranes," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 195(C), pages 414-425.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:195:y:2017:i:c:p:414-425
    DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2017.03.080
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261917303203
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.apenergy.2017.03.080?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. George Ni & Gabriel Li & Svetlana V. Boriskina & Hongxia Li & Weilin Yang & TieJun Zhang & Gang Chen, 2016. "Steam generation under one sun enabled by a floating structure with thermal concentration," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 1(9), pages 1-7, September.
    2. Mark A. Shannon & Paul W. Bohn & Menachem Elimelech & John G. Georgiadis & Benito J. Mariñas & Anne M. Mayes, 2008. "Science and technology for water purification in the coming decades," Nature, Nature, vol. 452(7185), pages 301-310, March.
    3. Hadi Ghasemi & George Ni & Amy Marie Marconnet & James Loomis & Selcuk Yerci & Nenad Miljkovic & Gang Chen, 2014. "Solar steam generation by heat localization," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 5(1), pages 1-7, December.
    4. Gupta, M.K. & Kaushik, S.C., 2010. "Exergy analysis and investigation for various feed water heaters of direct steam generation solar–thermal power plant," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 35(6), pages 1228-1235.
    5. Kyuyoung Bae & Gumin Kang & Suehyun K. Cho & Wounjhang Park & Kyoungsik Kim & Willie J. Padilla, 2015. "Flexible thin-film black gold membranes with ultrabroadband plasmonic nanofocusing for efficient solar vapour generation," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 6(1), pages 1-9, December.
    6. Wang, Weilong & Guo, Shaopeng & Li, Hailong & Yan, Jinyue & Zhao, Jun & Li, Xun & Ding, Jing, 2014. "Experimental study on the direct/indirect contact energy storage container in mobilized thermal energy system (M-TES)," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 181-189.
    7. Wang, Weilong & Yang, Xiaoxi & Fang, Yutang & Ding, Jing & Yan, Jinyue, 2009. "Preparation and thermal properties of polyethylene glycol/expanded graphite blends for energy storage," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 86(9), pages 1479-1483, September.
    8. Wang, Weilong & Li, Hailong & Guo, Shaopeng & He, Shiquan & Ding, Jing & Yan, Jinyue & Yang, Jianping, 2015. "Numerical simulation study on discharging process of the direct-contact phase change energy storage system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 61-68.
    9. Duić, Neven & Guzović, Zvonimir & Kafarov, Vyatcheslav & Klemeš, Jiří Jaromír & Mathiessen, Brian vad & Yan, Jinyue, 2013. "Sustainable development of energy, water and environment systems," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 3-5.
    10. Elfasakhany, Ashraf, 2016. "Performance assessment and productivity of a simple-type solar still integrated with nanocomposite energy storage system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 399-407.
    11. Roldán, M.I. & Valenzuela, L. & Zarza, E., 2013. "Thermal analysis of solar receiver pipes with superheated steam," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 73-84.
    12. Gao, Xuerui & Liu, Jiahong & Zhang, Jun & Yan, Jinyue & Bao, Shujun & Xu, He & Qin, Tao, 2013. "Feasibility evaluation of solar photovoltaic pumping irrigation system based on analysis of dynamic variation of groundwater table," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 182-193.
    13. Wang, Weilong & Yang, Xiaoxi & Fang, Yutang & Ding, Jing & Yan, Jinyue, 2009. "Enhanced thermal conductivity and thermal performance of form-stable composite phase change materials by using [beta]-Aluminum nitride," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 86(7-8), pages 1196-1200, July.
    14. Tobias D. Wheeler & Abraham D. Stroock, 2008. "The transpiration of water at negative pressures in a synthetic tree," Nature, Nature, vol. 455(7210), pages 208-212, September.
    15. Duan, Huiling & Xuan, Yimin, 2014. "Enhanced optical absorption of the plasmonic nanoshell suspension based on the solar photocatalytic hydrogen production system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 22-29.
    16. Colangelo, Gianpiero & Favale, Ernani & Miglietta, Paola & de Risi, Arturo & Milanese, Marco & Laforgia, Domenico, 2015. "Experimental test of an innovative high concentration nanofluid solar collector," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 154(C), pages 874-881.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Mohamed A. Abdelsalam & Muhammad Sajjad & Aikifa Raza & Faisal AlMarzooqi & TieJun Zhang, 2024. "Sustainable biomimetic solar distillation with edge crystallization for passive salt collection and zero brine discharge," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-10, December.
    2. Liu, Shang & Huang, Congliang & Luo, Xiao & Guo, Chuwen, 2019. "Performance optimization of bi-layer solar steam generation system through tuning porosity of bottom layer," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 239(C), pages 504-513.
    3. Li, Haoran & He, Yurong & Liu, Ziyu & Jiang, Baocheng & Huang, Yimin, 2017. "A flexible thin-film membrane with broadband Ag@TiO2 nanoparticle for high-efficiency solar evaporation enhancement," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 210-219.
    4. Arunkumar, T. & Ao, Yali & Luo, Zhifang & Zhang, Lin & Li, Jing & Denkenberger, D. & Wang, Jiaqiang, 2019. "Energy efficient materials for solar water distillation - A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    5. Liu, Peng-Fei & Miao, Lei & Deng, Ziyang & Zhou, Jianhua & Gu, Yufei & Chen, Siyi & Cai, Huanfu & Sun, Lixian & Tanemura, Sakae, 2019. "Flame-treated and fast-assembled foam system for direct solar steam generation and non-plugging high salinity desalination with self-cleaning effect," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 241(C), pages 652-659.
    6. Mu, L. & Chen, L. & Lin, L. & Park, Y.H. & Wang, H. & Xu, P. & Kota, K. & Kuravi, S., 2021. "An overview of solar still enhancement approaches for increased freshwater production rates from a thermal process perspective," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    7. Huang, Jian & He, Yurong & Hu, Yanwei & Wang, Xinzhi, 2018. "Steam generation enabled by a high efficiency solar absorber with thermal concentration," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 165(PB), pages 1282-1291.
    8. Tsogtbilegt Boldoo & Jeonggyun Ham & Eui Kim & Honghyun Cho, 2020. "Review of the Photothermal Energy Conversion Performance of Nanofluids, Their Applications, and Recent Advances," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-33, November.
    9. Ma, Sainan & Chiu, Chun Pang & Zhu, Yujiao & Tang, Chun Yin & Long, Hui & Qarony, Wayesh & Zhao, Xinhua & Zhang, Xuming & Lo, Wai Hung & Tsang, Yuen Hong, 2017. "Recycled waste black polyurethane sponges for solar vapor generation and distillation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C), pages 63-69.
    10. Li, Qiyuan & Beier, Lisa-Jil & Tan, Joel & Brown, Celia & Lian, Boyue & Zhong, Wenwei & Wang, Yuan & Ji, Chao & Dai, Pan & Li, Tianyu & Le Clech, Pierre & Tyagi, Himanshu & Liu, Xuefei & Leslie, Greg , 2019. "An integrated, solar-driven membrane distillation system for water purification and energy generation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 237(C), pages 534-548.
    11. Amjad, Muhammad & Gardy, Jabbar & Hassanpour, Ali & Wen, Dongsheng, 2018. "Novel draw solution for forward osmosis based solar desalination," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 230(C), pages 220-231.
    12. Chen, Meijie & He, Yurong & Wang, Xinzhi & Hu, Yanwei, 2018. "Complementary enhanced solar thermal conversion performance of core-shell nanoparticles," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 211(C), pages 735-742.
    13. Luo, Xiao & Wu, Dongxu & Huang, Congliang & Rao, Zhonghao, 2019. "Skeleton double layer structure for high solar steam generation," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 1032-1039.
    14. Gnanasekaran, Arulmurugan & Rajaram, Kamatchi, 2024. "Rational design of different interfacial evaporators for solar steam generation: Recent development, fabrication, challenges and applications," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 192(C).
    15. Gong, Biyao & Yang, Huachao & Wu, Shenghao & Tian, Yikuan & Yan, Jianhua & Cen, Kefa & Bo, Zheng & Ostrikov, Kostya (Ken), 2021. "Phase change material enhanced sustained and energy-efficient solar-thermal water desalination," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 301(C).
    16. Gong, Feng & Wang, Wenbin & Li, Hao & Xia, Dawei (David) & Dai, Qingwen & Wu, Xinlin & Wang, Mingzhou & Li, Jian & Papavassiliou, Dimitrios V. & Xiao, Rui, 2020. "Solid waste and graphite derived solar steam generator for highly-efficient and cost-effective water purification," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 261(C).
    17. Mehrali, Mohammad & Ghatkesar, Murali Krishna & Pecnik, Rene, 2018. "Full-spectrum volumetric solar thermal conversion via graphene/silver hybrid plasmonic nanofluids," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 224(C), pages 103-115.
    18. Zhang, Qian & Hu, Run & Chen, Yali & Xiao, Xingfang & Zhao, Guomeng & Yang, Hongjun & Li, Jinhua & Xu, Weilin & Wang, Xianbao, 2020. "Banyan-inspired hierarchical evaporators for efficient solar photothermal conversion," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 276(C).
    19. Subhash C. Singh & Mohamed ElKabbash & Zilong Li & Xiaohan Li & Bhabesh Regmi & Matthew Madsen & Sohail A. Jalil & Zhibing Zhan & Jihua Zhang & Chunlei Guo, 2020. "Solar-trackable super-wicking black metal panel for photothermal water sanitation," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 3(11), pages 938-946, November.
    20. Huang, Jian & He, Yurong & Chen, Meijie & Wang, Xinzhi, 2019. "Separating photo-thermal conversion and steam generation process for evaporation enhancement using a solar absorber," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 236(C), pages 244-252.
    21. Fan, Qi & Wu, Lin & Liang, Yan & Xu, Zhicheng & Li, Yungeng & Wang, Jun & Lund, Peter D. & Zeng, Mengyuan & Wang, Wei, 2021. "The role of micro-nano pores in interfacial solar evaporation systems – A review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 292(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Chen, Meijie & He, Yurong & Wang, Xinzhi & Hu, Yanwei, 2018. "Complementary enhanced solar thermal conversion performance of core-shell nanoparticles," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 211(C), pages 735-742.
    2. Liu, Xing & Wang, Xinzhi & Huang, Jian & Cheng, Gong & He, Yurong, 2018. "Volumetric solar steam generation enhanced by reduced graphene oxide nanofluid," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 220(C), pages 302-312.
    3. Huang, Jian & He, Yurong & Chen, Meijie & Wang, Xinzhi, 2019. "Separating photo-thermal conversion and steam generation process for evaporation enhancement using a solar absorber," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 236(C), pages 244-252.
    4. Xin Jin & Guiping Lin & Haichuan Jin, 2021. "Experimental Investigations on Steam Generation in Nanofluids under Concentrated Solar Radiation," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-18, July.
    5. Huang, Qichen & Liang, Xuechen & Yan, Chongyuan & Liu, Yizhen, 2021. "Review of interface solar-driven steam generation systems: High-efficiency strategies, applications and challenges," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 283(C).
    6. Wang, Weilong & Li, Hailong & Guo, Shaopeng & He, Shiquan & Ding, Jing & Yan, Jinyue & Yang, Jianping, 2015. "Numerical simulation study on discharging process of the direct-contact phase change energy storage system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 61-68.
    7. Jin, Haichuan & Lin, Guiping & Zeiny, Aimen & Bai, Lizhan & Wen, Dongsheng, 2019. "Nanoparticle-based solar vapor generation: An experimental and numerical study," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 178(C), pages 447-459.
    8. Gong, Biyao & Yang, Huachao & Wu, Shenghao & Tian, Yikuan & Yan, Jianhua & Cen, Kefa & Bo, Zheng & Ostrikov, Kostya (Ken), 2021. "Phase change material enhanced sustained and energy-efficient solar-thermal water desalination," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 301(C).
    9. Zhou, Zhaozixuan & Gong, Junyao & Zhang, Chunhua & Tang, Wenyang & Wei, Bangyang & Wang, Jiandong & Fu, Zhuan & Li, Li & Li, Wenbin & Xia, Liangjun, 2023. "Hierarchically porous carbonized Pleurotus eryngii based solar steam generator for efficient wastewater purification," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 216(C).
    10. Guo, Shaopeng & Zhao, Jun & Wang, Weilong & Yan, Jinyue & Jin, Guang & Zhang, Zhiyu & Gu, Jie & Niu, Yonghong, 2016. "Numerical study of the improvement of an indirect contact mobilized thermal energy storage container," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 476-486.
    11. Mu, L. & Chen, L. & Lin, L. & Park, Y.H. & Wang, H. & Xu, P. & Kota, K. & Kuravi, S., 2021. "An overview of solar still enhancement approaches for increased freshwater production rates from a thermal process perspective," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    12. Yu, Zhen & Cheng, Shaoan & Gu, Ruonan & Li, Yihang & Dai, Shaoling & Mao, Zhengzhong, 2021. "Interfacial solar evaporator for clean water production and beyond: From design to application," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 299(C).
    13. Du, Kun & Calautit, John & Eames, Philip & Wu, Yupeng, 2021. "A state-of-the-art review of the application of phase change materials (PCM) in Mobilized-Thermal Energy Storage (M-TES) for recovering low-temperature industrial waste heat (IWH) for distributed heat," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 168(C), pages 1040-1057.
    14. Fan, Qi & Wu, Lin & Liang, Yan & Xu, Zhicheng & Li, Yungeng & Wang, Jun & Lund, Peter D. & Zeng, Mengyuan & Wang, Wei, 2021. "The role of micro-nano pores in interfacial solar evaporation systems – A review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 292(C).
    15. Aikifa Raza & Jin-You Lu & Safa Alzaim & Hongxia Li & TieJun Zhang, 2018. "Novel Receiver-Enhanced Solar Vapor Generation: Review and Perspectives," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-29, January.
    16. Guo, Qijing & Yi, Hao & Jia, Feifei & Song, Shaoxian, 2022. "Vertical porous MoS2/hectorite double-layered aerogel as superior salt resistant and highly efficient solar steam generators," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 194(C), pages 68-79.
    17. Zhangyang Kang & Wu Zhou & Kaijie Qiu & Chaojie Wang & Zhaolong Qin & Bingyang Zhang & Qiongqiong Yao, 2023. "Numerical Simulation of an Indirect Contact Mobilized Thermal Energy Storage Container with Different Tube Bundle Layout and Fin Structure," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-13, March.
    18. Zhangyang Kang & Rufei Tan & Wu Zhou & Zhaolong Qin & Sen Liu, 2023. "Numerical Simulation and Optimization of a Phase-Change Energy Storage Box in a Modular Mobile Thermal Energy Supply System," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-19, September.
    19. Joulin, Annabelle & Younsi, Zohir & Zalewski, Laurent & Lassue, Stéphane & Rousse, Daniel R. & Cavrot, Jean-Paul, 2011. "Experimental and numerical investigation of a phase change material: Thermal-energy storage and release," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 88(7), pages 2454-2462, July.
    20. Ma, Sainan & Chiu, Chun Pang & Zhu, Yujiao & Tang, Chun Yin & Long, Hui & Qarony, Wayesh & Zhao, Xinhua & Zhang, Xuming & Lo, Wai Hung & Tsang, Yuen Hong, 2017. "Recycled waste black polyurethane sponges for solar vapor generation and distillation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C), pages 63-69.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:195:y:2017:i:c:p:414-425. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/405891/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.