Integration of photothermal water evaporation with photocatalytic microplastics upcycling via nanofluidic thermal management

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Meng, Xiangyu; Wang, Xin; Yin, Kuibo; Jing, Yao; Gu, Liuning; Tao, Zequan; Ren, Xinchuan; Tang, Mingyu; Shao, Xinxing; Sun, Litao; Sun, Yueming; Dai, Yunqian; Xiong, Yujie
• 署名单位: Southeast University - China; Anhui Normal University; Southeast University - China; Southeast University - China; Chinese Academy of Sciences; University of Science & Technology of China, CAS
• 刊物名称: PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0027-10045
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2317192121
• 发表日期: 2024-03-26
• 关键词: oxide

摘要

Photothermal heating and photocatalytic treatment are two solar- driven water processing approaches by harnessing NIR and UV-vis light, respectively, which can fully utilize solar energy if integrated. However, it remains a challenge to achieve high performance in both approaches when integrated in a material due to uncontrollable heat diffusion. Here, we report a demonstration of heat confinement on photothermal sites and fluid cooling on photocatalysis sites at the nanoscale, within a well- designed heat and fluid confinement nanofiber reactor. Photothermal and photocatalytic nanostructures were alternatively aligned in electrospun nanofibers for on - demand nanofluidic thermal management as well as easy folding into 3D structures with enhanced light utilization and mass transfer. Such a design showed simultaneously high photothermal evaporation rate (2.59 kg m-2 h-1, exceeding the limit rate) and efficient photocatalytic upcycling of microplastics pollutant into valued products. Enabled by controlled photothermal heating, the valued main product (i.e., methyl acetate) can be evaporated out with 100% selectivity by in situ separation.