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    Porous three-dimensional carbon foams with interconnected microchannels for high-efficiency solar-to-vapor conversion and desalination

    Year: 2019

    Journal: J. Mater. Chem. A, Volume 7, JUN 7, page 13036–13042

    Authors: Qiu, Pengxiang; Liu, Fengling; Xu, Chenmin; Chen, Huan; Jiang, Fang; Li, Yang; Guo, Zhaobing

    Organizations: National Natural Science Foundation of ChinaNational Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) [41873016, 51778295, 51608277]; Jiangsu Province "333 Talent Project" [BRA2018033]; Startup Foundation for Introducing Talent of NUIST [2018r035, 2018r036]

    Solar-driven distillation and desalination are promising technologies for large-scale water purification. Internal micro-channels are critical for the performance of a steam generation device in consideration of thermal management and water transportation. Here, we designed novel porous three-dimensional carbon foams (CFs) with unique interconnected channels and rough surfaces via alkali activation of naturally abundant wood. Promoted by the rough surface, the CFs can harvest more than 97% of the energy of the solar spectrum. The hydrophilic interconnected micro-channels of the CFs enhance water transportation and heat localization. Benefiting from these advantages, the highest steam generation efficiency of the CFs reaches 80.1% under 1 kW m(-2). In addition, the CFs also show high stability under harsh conditions and high activity in desalination of seawater. With the unique interconnected microchannels, this porous carbon device offers a scalable, cost-effective and efficient choice for solar steam generation.
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