Solar steam generators could be made with wood, fabric or sponges

By Chloe Della Costa, University of Chicago

As the global population grows, fresh water supplies are more precious than ever. While scientists and engineers know how to purify water, making those methods sustainable and energy efficient is another question.

Advanced Materials Interfaces

In a new study, UChicago and Argonne scientists help pioneer a new method of solar steam generation.

One promising approach is solar-driven distillation, or solar steam generation, which can help us get fresh water from wastewater or seawater. Researchers have used this method to successfully distill small batches of purified water, but they are still searching for a way to do this on a large scale.

More at Phys.org