Murray’s Law-Inspired Bionic Vein-Shaped Flow Electrode Channel on Flow Capacitive Deionization Systems: Anti-clogging Design and Desalination Performance Optimization

Flow electrode capacitive deionization (FCDI) technology holds promise for continuous desalination. However, its performance is hindered by flow channel clogging under high carbon content conditions. Inspired by Murray’s law governing natural vascular systems, this study proposes a bioinspired vein-shaped flow channel (V-channel) to address the clogging issue in conventional serpentine flow channel (S-channel). Experimental results reveal that the maximum carbon content of the FCDI system for S-channel (S-FCDI) is 35.0 wt % with the average salt removal rate (ASRR) of 128.5 μg cm–2 min–1 and the charge efficiency (CE) of 70.4%. In contrast, the carbon content for the V-channel (V-FCDI) can be increased to 45.0 wt %, with the ASRR and CE as high as 154.8 μg cm–2 min–1 and 83.7%, respectively. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations demonstrate that the V-channel reduces the proportion of high-velocity zones by 51.9% compared to the S-channel, which is achieved through flow splitting and enhanced fluid mixing. Simplified particle tracking simulations further reveal that the carbon particle retention rate in the V-channel (10.3%) is significantly lower than that in the S-channel (29.4%) after 300 s. Practical validation through fluoride-containing wastewater treatment shows a conductivity reduction from 6.9 mS cm–1 to 0.8 mS cm–1 within 11 h. This bioinspired design establishes a new pathway for high-performance FCDI systems by reducing clogging and enhancing ion transport dynamics.