Materials scientists at the Institute of Process Engineering in Beijing and Shenzhen University have built a solar-powered desalination device that could make fresh water cheaper to produce than bottled water.
The device uses a weave of nanoparticle spheres threaded together with polymer, inspired by the structure of a shirt button, that absorbs 90.2 percent of incoming sunlight and uses it to evaporate seawater using 47.5 percent less energy than earlier designs.
Over a year of testing, the system produced 5.3 gallons of WHO-grade drinking water a day and was used to irrigate a 50-square-foot vegetable plot of bok choi, beans, and corn year-round. At that output, the researchers say the cost per gallon would undercut a bottled water plant within about two years.
The team is now working to improve condensation efficiency and lower system costs further, with the goal of scaling the technology up for water-scarce coastal areas, islands, and remote regions where clean water access remains a daily challenge.
