Waste Egg Tray and Toner-Derived Highly Efficient 3D Solar Evaporator for Freshwater Generation

• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c22215
• Publication Date: 2022-02-04T20:35:08Z
• Authors: Md. Nahian Al Sub...; Ahmed Mortuza Sal...; Safayet Ahmed; Ping Kwong Cheng; Junpeng Qiao; Tawsif Ibne Alam; Yuen Hong Tsang
• Keywords: 13. Climate action; 02 engineering and technology; 0210 nano-technology; 7. Clean energy; 6. Clean water; 12. Responsible consumption

With the advancement of civilization, water purification, as well as management and disposal of ever-increasing municipal solid waste (MSW), and e-waste, have become global concerns. To address these issues in a sustainable way, a 3D solar evaporator has been proposed in this paper by repurposing recycled paper from MSW in the form of egg trays and waste dry toner (e-waste) using a facile fabrication method. The unique 3D porous structure, fibrous surface, superior water absorbing capability as well as low thermal conductivity of wastepaper-derived egg trays make them an excellent candidate for an efficient solar evaporator, while the waste toner powder coating significantly enhances the optical absorbance capacity. Under 1 sun illumination, the proposed solar evaporator demonstrates an excellent evaporation rate and efficiency of 1.3 kg/m2 h and 78.5%, respectively. Moreover, the competitive advantage of the 3D structure in collecting solar irradiance at various light incident angles in comparison to a 2D structure, excellent cycle stability, low processing temperature, and the use of low-cost waste materials enable its use for large-scale water purification systems.