Sustainable Biomass-Derived Photothermal Material for Solar-Driven Seawater Desalination and Wastewater Treatment

Jing-Bin Wu, Ming-Xi Guo (), Hong-Li Fan, Feng-Hai Li, Guo-Peng Han and Qian-Qian Guo
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Jing-Bin Wu: Yuncheng Campus, Heze University, Yuncheng 274700, China
Ming-Xi Guo: College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Heze University, Heze 274015, China
Hong-Li Fan: College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Heze University, Heze 274015, China
Feng-Hai Li: College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Heze University, Heze 274015, China
Guo-Peng Han: College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Heze University, Heze 274015, China
Qian-Qian Guo: College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Heze University, Heze 274015, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 18, 1-20

Abstract: The global freshwater scarcity crisis demands sustainable solutions aligned with circular economy principles. Solar-driven steam generation (SSG) has emerged as a promising approach to obtain freshwater from seawater or wastewater using solar energy. However, its widespread application relies on the development of energy-efficient, eco-friendly, and high-performance photothermal conversion materials. Herein, we present a sustainable strategy for converting autumn-fallen plane tree leaves into a photothermal material (AC-800) via KOH activation at 800 °C. AC-800 exhibits 91% broadband absorption (250–2500 nm). A light-absorbing layer fabricated by vacuum filtration was used for SSG tests. Under 1 sun irradiation, AC-800 achieves an evaporation rate of 1.5441 kg·m −2 ·h −1 with 87.1% solar-to-vapor efficiency and a surface temperature of 48.3 °C. Ten repetitive cycles of experiments using AC-800 has demonstrated the cycling stability of SSG. Desalinated water meets World Health Organization (WHO) drinking water standards, and organic dye removal from wastewater in distilled water reaches ~100%. This low-cost, eco-friendly strategy advances sustainable SSG, with potential in seawater desalination and wastewater treatment to support circular economy objectives.

Keywords: renewable biomass waste; photothermal conversion; solar-driven steam generation; desalination; wastewater treatment; photothermal–photocatalytic synergistic effect (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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