Carbon Dot Nano‐Spacers in Triazine Networks for Integrated Photothermal Seawater Desalination and H <sub>2</sub> O <sub>2</sub> Production

ABSTRACT Solar‐driven seawater desalination coupled with efficient H 2 O 2 generation represents a promising dual‐function strategy, advancing sustainable solutions for clean water and chemical production. Here, we report a metal‐free, photothermally active seawater evaporator utilizing carbon dots (CDs) embedded in a covalent triazine network (CTN) synthesized via cyclotrimerization of cyanated carbon dots (CN‐CDs). The CDs function as nano‐spacers that covalently link triazine units, thus enhancing the network's physicochemical properties and endowing it with significant photothermal catalytic activity. This low‐cost integrated photothermal‐catalytic system rapidly and efficiently produced desalinated water enriched with high concentrations of H 2 O 2 without the need for sacrificial agents and catalyst separation. This framework exhibits a solar‐to‐thermal efficiency of 44.3%, markedly superior to conventional covalent triazine frameworks and other carbon materials. Under simulated sunlight, it demonstrates robust photothermal catalytic H 2 O 2 production, achieving an impressive rate of 1066.7 μmol g −1 h −1 in seawater, with noteworthy desalination efficiency (82.71%). More importantly, it is readily scalable. This improvement marks a substantial advancement toward metal‐free photocatalysts with integrated photothermal properties, paving the way for the sustainable and scalable application of solar energy devices.

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Publication Details

Journal
Carbon Energy
Published
2026-03-17
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/cey2.70089
Primary Topic
Solar-Powered Water Purification Methods
Type
article
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article

Carbon Dot Nano‐Spacers in Triazine Networks for Integrated Photothermal Seawater Desalination and H 2 O 2 Production

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Carbon Energy
Solar-Powered Water Purification Methods
article

Carbon Dot Nano‐Spacers in Triazine Networks for Integrated Photothermal Seawater Desalination and H 2 O 2 Production

Sai Kishore Ravi, Jian Li, Hongda Guo, Anithadevi Sekar, Shuo Liu, Ruijia Wang, Wenjie Tian, Xiaoxia Chen, Jingkai Lin, Zhijun Chen, Shujun Li, Huayang Zhang, Min Ge, Tony D. James
article en

Abstract

ABSTRACT Solar‐driven seawater desalination coupled with efficient H 2 O 2 generation represents a promising dual‐function strategy, advancing sustainable solutions for clean water and chemical production. Here, we report a metal‐free, photothermally active seawater evaporator utilizing carbon dots (CDs) embedded in a covalent triazine network (CTN) synthesized via cyclotrimerization of cyanated carbon dots (CN‐CDs). The CDs function as nano‐spacers that covalently link triazine units, thus enhancing the network's physicochemical properties and endowing it with significant photothermal catalytic activity. This low‐cost integrated photothermal‐catalytic system rapidly and efficiently produced desalinated water enriched with high concentrations of H 2 O 2 without the need for sacrificial agents and catalyst separation. This framework exhibits a solar‐to‐thermal efficiency of 44.3%, markedly superior to conventional covalent triazine frameworks and other carbon materials. Under simulated sunlight, it demonstrates robust photothermal catalytic H 2 O 2 production, achieving an impressive rate of 1066.7 μmol g −1 h −1 in seawater, with noteworthy desalination efficiency (82.71%). More importantly, it is readily scalable. This improvement marks a substantial advancement toward metal‐free photocatalysts with integrated photothermal properties, paving the way for the sustainable and scalable application of solar energy devices.

Carbon Energy
City University of Hong Kong (HK), Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces (DE), Northeast Forestry University (CN), University of Bath (GB), The University of Adelaide (AU), Henan Normal University (CN), Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (DE)
Openalex Percentile: Top 22%
Solar-Powered Water Purification Methods
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