Engineering electrothermally enhanced interfacial evaporation for high-performance solar desalination
Higgins M. Wilson, Tushar Prashant Pandit, Shakeelur Raheman AR, Arun Kumar Thirugnanasambantham, Hyeong Woo Lim, Sang Joon Lee
Abstract
Maximizing evaporation performance is crucial for advancing interfacial steam generation (ISG) systems, yet the potential of Joule heating for this remains underexplored. Here, we present a high-performance interfacial evaporator that leverages Joule heating-based evaporation to achieve very high water evaporation rates. The system integrates thiol-functionalized glassy carbon sponge with ultra-low electrical resistance ( ~ 0.75 Ω) to maximize joule heating. Under 1 sun illumination and a 37 W power input, the evaporator achieves an evaporation rate of ~205 kg m⁻²h⁻¹, reaching surface temperatures of 97 °C at the air–water interface. With 3.5 wt% saltwater, joule heating alone produces 11.86 kg m⁻²h⁻¹ , and combined solar (1sun)-electrothermal heating increases this to ~18 kg m⁻²h⁻¹. This work showcases the role of high electrical power in interfacial evaporation, offering a pathway for rapid and high-performance steam generation. Higgins M. Wilson and colleagues report a high-performance interfacial steam generator that combines solar and high-power Joule heating for rapid water evaporation. This was enabled by a stable, low-resistance glassy carbon sponge and a high-power electric supply