Plasmonic Wood for High‐Efficiency Solar Steam Generation

TLDR

Plasmonic metal nanoparticles can efficiently convert light into heat, making them attractive for solar steam generation. This study introduces plasmonic wood, a novel material formed by uniformly decorating fine metal nanoparticles onto the 3D mesoporous matrix of natural wood. The resulting structure absorbs ≈99 % of light from 200 to 2500 nm via plasmonic and waveguide effects, while its low‑tortuosity micro‑ and nano‑channels transport water upward by capillarity. The plasmonic wood achieves an 85 % solar‑to‑steam conversion efficiency under ten‑sun illumination and remains stable after 144 h of cycling, demonstrating its promise for solar‑driven desalination.

Abstract

Abstract Plasmonic metal nanoparticles are a category of plasmonic materials that can efficiently convert light into heat under illumination, which can be applied in the field of solar steam generation. Here, this study designs a novel type of plasmonic material, which is made by uniformly decorating fine metal nanoparticles into the 3D mesoporous matrix of natural wood (plasmonic wood). The plasmonic wood exhibits high light absorption ability (≈99%) over a broad wavelength range from 200 to 2500 nm due to the plasmonic effect of metal nanoparticles and the waveguide effect of microchannels in the wood matrix. The 3D mesoporous wood with numerous low‐tortuosity microchannels and nanochannels can transport water up from the bottom of the device effectively due to the capillary effect. As a result, the 3D aligned porous architecture can achieve a high solar conversion efficiency of 85% under ten‐sun illumination (10 kW m −2 ). The plasmonic wood also exhibits superior stability for solar steam generation, without any degradation after being evaluated for 144 h. Its high conversion efficiency and excellent cycling stability demonstrate the potential of newly developed plasmonic wood to solar energy‐based water desalination.