Unveiling the Challenge of Evaporator Design in Clean Water Production Promoted by Superabsorbent Hydrogels and Sunlight.

ABSTRACT: Climate change is affecting water availability and the supply. This situation is particularly worrying in Mediterranean area countries, where droughts are becoming increasingly long and severe. Herein, a superabsorbent porous hydrogel composed of thermoresponsive hydrogel (TSH) poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm), copolymerized with poly(acrylamide) (PAAm) and modified with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrenesulfonate (PEDOT/PSS), as a solar absorber, is presented. This superabsorbent hydrogel optimizes water uptake and provides long life stability through a continuous supply of water to the evaporation surface, promoted by its thermosensitivity property and light absorption efficiency with a very low amount of photothermal material (1 wt %). The fine-tuning of both the h

SUBMITTER: Amir U 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12781103 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature