A Paintable Bioinspired Stratified Skin Resolving the Cooling‐Electricity Trade‐Off for All‐Weather Building Retrofits

ABSTRACT Passive daytime radiative cooling (PDRC) can mitigate heat stress by dissipating heat into cold outer space, yet its benefit is suppressed by rainfall and by overcooling at higher latitudes. To offset these limitations, globally distributed rainfall can be harnessed for complementary electricity generation via a droplet electricity generator (DEG). However, integrating DEG with PDRC while preserving both cooling and electrical performance remains challenging. Inspired by Tillandsia trichomes, we report a paintable bifunctional skin that resolves this trade‐off through stratified organization and functional reuse. A fluorinated top layer enables repeatable droplet electrification and self‐cleaning while preserving strong mid‐infrared emission, whereas nanoparticle‐based layers simultaneously provide broadband solar scattering and dielectric charge storage. Guided by Monte Carlo simulations, this skin exhibits 96.2% solar reflectance and 96.5% thermal emissivity, delivers a peak net cooling power of 104 W m −2 , and sustains outdoor sub‐ambient cooling of up to 9.5°C for more than six months. During rainfall, it reaches a peak electrical power density of 357 W m −2 . Global modeling across 1803 cities predicts a 33.9% expansion in the latitude span of net‐positive annual benefit relative to standalone PDRC, offering a scalable route toward all‐weather, latitude‐robust building retrofits.

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Publication Details

Journal
Advanced Materials
Published
2026-06-13
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.73697
Primary Topic
Thermal Radiation and Cooling Technologies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

A Paintable Bioinspired Stratified Skin Resolving the Cooling‐Electricity Trade‐Off for All‐Weather Building Retrofits

Meng Yang, Yijun Zeng, Jinpei Wang, Zuankai Wang et al.
Advanced Materials
Thermal Radiation and Cooling Technologies
article

A Paintable Bioinspired Stratified Skin Resolving the Cooling‐Electricity Trade‐Off for All‐Weather Building Retrofits

Meng Yang, Yijun Zeng, Jinpei Wang, Zuankai Wang, Shouwei Gao, Xiong Wang, Steven Wang, J S Li, Zhiran Yi, Zhiwei Lin, Yuxin Song, Liang Peng, Xiangyang Zhang, Xingyu Chen, Jingjing Wang, Duu‐Jong Lee, Jiahao Zhang, Tri Atmaja, Yuanqing Zhu, Shun Li, Zhenyu Xu, Xiangyu Li
article en

Abstract

ABSTRACT Passive daytime radiative cooling (PDRC) can mitigate heat stress by dissipating heat into cold outer space, yet its benefit is suppressed by rainfall and by overcooling at higher latitudes. To offset these limitations, globally distributed rainfall can be harnessed for complementary electricity generation via a droplet electricity generator (DEG). However, integrating DEG with PDRC while preserving both cooling and electrical performance remains challenging. Inspired by Tillandsia trichomes, we report a paintable bifunctional skin that resolves this trade‐off through stratified organization and functional reuse. A fluorinated top layer enables repeatable droplet electrification and self‐cleaning while preserving strong mid‐infrared emission, whereas nanoparticle‐based layers simultaneously provide broadband solar scattering and dielectric charge storage. Guided by Monte Carlo simulations, this skin exhibits 96.2% solar reflectance and 96.5% thermal emissivity, delivers a peak net cooling power of 104 W m −2 , and sustains outdoor sub‐ambient cooling of up to 9.5°C for more than six months. During rainfall, it reaches a peak electrical power density of 357 W m −2 . Global modeling across 1803 cities predicts a 33.9% expansion in the latitude span of net‐positive annual benefit relative to standalone PDRC, offering a scalable route toward all‐weather, latitude‐robust building retrofits.

Advanced Materials
Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HK), City University of Hong Kong (HK), Meteorological, Climatological, And Geophysical Agency (ID), Knoxville College (US), University of Tennessee at Knoxville (US)
Openalex Percentile: Top 9%
Thermal Radiation and Cooling Technologies
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