Temperature-Sensitive Porous Hydrogel with High Salt Resistance for Solar Interface Evaporators

作者：Zhiying Wang, Zifan Wang, Hongda Yang, Guoyun Tong, Pengju Qiao, J. Jing, Jing Fang, Zhensheng Yang, Hao Li · 发表于：ACS Applied Polymer Materials · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1021/acsapm.4c02795 · 被引用次数：12 · 研究领域：Solar-Powered Water Purification Methods、Solar Thermal and Photovoltaic Systems、Advanced Sensor and Energy Harvesting Materials

Solar interfacial evaporation is a promising water desalination method. However, developing cost-effective solar evaporators with a high salt resistance remains a challenge. One of the main methods to ensure an adequate water supply to the evaporation surface in solar interfacial evaporation involves maintaining a sufficient water supply to the surface. However, the water transport capacity positively correlates with heat loss, creating a trade-off between thermal localization and salt resistance. This work introduces an innovative approach utilizing poly( N, N -diethylacrylamide) (PDEAAm) and sodium alginate as the hydrogel matrix, combined with sodium dodecyl sulfonate and mechanical stirring to fabricate a macroporous structure. This structure facilitates the autonomous generation of a Janus-structured macroporous hydrogel evaporator, which mitigates the trade-off to achieve optimal salt-resistance and is applicable for solar interfacial evaporation of concentrated saline. The evaporation and salt resistance performance of this evaporator was evaluated, revealing that PY-DGSP exhibits exceptional evaporation and salt resistance capabilities. The thermosensitive properties of PDEAAm enable PY-DGSP to self-respond under illumination, forming a hydrophobic upper layer and a hydrophilic lower layer Janus structure. At night, the structure reverts to a hydrophilic state, achieving thermal localization during evaporation. Furthermore, the macroporous structure significantly enha...