A Three‐Level Biomimetic Evaporation System Inspired by Root‐Stem‐Leaf for High‐Performance Solar Desalination

ABSTRACT Solar‐driven interfacial evaporation offers a promising route to mitigate global freshwater shortage scarcity. Nevertheless, achieving efficient management of water, salt, and heat remains a critical challenge in designing photothermal evaporation systems. Inspired by the hierarchical structure of tree root–stem–leaf systems, we propose a three‐level biomimetic strategy to fabricate a trilevel photothermal fibrous membrane that enables highly efficient and stable solar desalination of seawater. This membrane features a spatially and functionally decoupled architecture: a hydrophilic polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fibrous substrate serves as a root‐like layer for rapid water uptake; a sulfobetaine methacrylate (SBMA)‐modified PAN (PAN@SBMA2) intermediate layer mimics stem vasculature, synergistically regulating water retention and salt rejection through strong hydration and electrostatic screening; and a 2.0 wt% of molybdenum sulfide (MoS 2 ) loaded polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) (2.0MoS 2 @PVDF) top layer acts as a leaf‐inspired photothermal zone for localized solar–thermal conversion and vapor generation. Benefitting from the synergistic water‐salt‐heat enhancement afforded by this ‘root‐stem‐leaf’ cooperative interlayer design, the resulting 2.0MoS 2 @PVDF‐PAN@SBMA2‐PAN (2.0MP‐PS2‐P) membrane achieves a high evaporation rate and an efficiency. This work not only presents an efficient solar‐driven evaporation membrane for solar desalination but also demonstrates a systematic biomimetic structure paradigm for synergistic resource management in interfacial evaporation systems.

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Publication Details

Journal
Advanced Functional Materials
Published
2026-01-28
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202529093
Citations
1
Primary Topic
Solar-Powered Water Purification Methods
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
9.79

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article

A Three‐Level Biomimetic Evaporation System Inspired by Root‐Stem‐Leaf for High‐Performance Solar Desalination

W.Z. Li, Dongya Yang, Feng Qiu, Jiayao Li et al.
1 citations
Advanced Functional Materials
Solar-Powered Water Purification Methods
9.79
article

A Three‐Level Biomimetic Evaporation System Inspired by Root‐Stem‐Leaf for High‐Performance Solar Desalination

W.Z. Li, Dongya Yang, Feng Qiu, Jiayao Li, Yun Dai, Xuejie Yue, Hao Chen, Tao Zhang
article en
1 citations

Abstract

ABSTRACT Solar‐driven interfacial evaporation offers a promising route to mitigate global freshwater shortage scarcity. Nevertheless, achieving efficient management of water, salt, and heat remains a critical challenge in designing photothermal evaporation systems. Inspired by the hierarchical structure of tree root–stem–leaf systems, we propose a three‐level biomimetic strategy to fabricate a trilevel photothermal fibrous membrane that enables highly efficient and stable solar desalination of seawater. This membrane features a spatially and functionally decoupled architecture: a hydrophilic polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fibrous substrate serves as a root‐like layer for rapid water uptake; a sulfobetaine methacrylate (SBMA)‐modified PAN (PAN@SBMA2) intermediate layer mimics stem vasculature, synergistically regulating water retention and salt rejection through strong hydration and electrostatic screening; and a 2.0 wt% of molybdenum sulfide (MoS 2 ) loaded polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) (2.0MoS 2 @PVDF) top layer acts as a leaf‐inspired photothermal zone for localized solar–thermal conversion and vapor generation. Benefitting from the synergistic water‐salt‐heat enhancement afforded by this ‘root‐stem‐leaf’ cooperative interlayer design, the resulting 2.0MoS 2 @PVDF‐PAN@SBMA2‐PAN (2.0MP‐PS2‐P) membrane achieves a high evaporation rate and an efficiency. This work not only presents an efficient solar‐driven evaporation membrane for solar desalination but also demonstrates a systematic biomimetic structure paradigm for synergistic resource management in interfacial evaporation systems.

Advanced Functional Materials
Jiangsu University (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, China Postdoctoral Science Foundation, Government of Jiangsu Province
Openalex Percentile: Top 4%
Solar-Powered Water Purification Methods
9.79
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