Song et al. (2026) Quantifying the global potential of solar-driven interfacial evaporation using a validated climate–performance model

Identification

• Journal: Nature Water
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-10-07
• Authors: Yan Song, Peiru Shi, Yuping Du, Yucan Lu, Zibo Zhou, Jia Zhu
• DOI: 10.1038/s44221-026-00728-4

Research Groups

• National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, School of Sustainable Energy and Resources, Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling, Jiangsu Physical Science Research Center, Nanjing University
• College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Nanjing University
• School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University

Short Summary

This study develops a validated climate-performance model to quantify the global potential of solar-driven interfacial evaporation (SDIE) for various applications. The results show that SDIE can provide year-round sterilization in Niger, drinking water for 1 billion people at 2 l per day with a 0.7-m^2 device, and accelerate lithium-brine concentration by up to 135-fold.

Objective

• Quantify the global potential of solar-driven interfacial evaporation (SDIE) for various applications

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Global
• Temporal Scale: Hourly resolution

Methodology and Data

• Models used: SDIE-Geo, a validated climate-performance model
• Data sources: High-resolution climatic, hydrological, and socioeconomic datasets

Main Results

• SDIE can provide year-round sterilization in Niger
• Drinking water for 1 billion people at 2 l per day with a 0.7-m^2 device
• Accelerate lithium-brine concentration by up to 135-fold

Contributions

• This study provides quantitative guidance for SDIE deployment and design
• Establishes a general framework for evaluating climate-sensitive technologies at the global scale

Funding

• National Key R&D Program of China (grant no. 2024YFF0506000)
• National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant nos. 52525202, 52573247, 52461160296)
• Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (grant no. 20250107)
• GeoX Interdisciplinary Project of Frontiers Science Center for Critical Earth Material Cycling (grant no. 20250107)
• Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (grant nos. BK20233001, BK20243009)
• Carbon Peaking and Carbon Neutrality Science and Technology Innovation Fund of Jiangsu Province (grant no. BT2025017)
• Program for Innovative Talents and Entrepreneur in Suzhou (grant no. ZXL2025317)
• Fundamental and Interdisciplinary Disciplines Breakthrough Plan of the Ministry of Education of China (grant no. JYB2025XDXM410)
• Meituan Green Tech Fund

Citation

@article{Song2026Quantifying,
  author = {Song, Yan and Shi, Peiru and Du, Yuping and Lu, Yucan and Zhou, Zibo and Zhu, Jia},
  title = {Quantifying the global potential of solar-driven interfacial evaporation using a validated climate–performance model},
  journal = {Nature Water},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1038/s44221-026-00728-4},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s44221-026-00728-4}
}