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Vol. 18 (2026)

Gill-Inspired Dual-Effect All-Biomass Aerogel Evaporator Overcoming Salt Accumulation for Sustainable Solar Desalination

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-026-02284-8
Nuo Liu
Graduate School of Medicine, Science and Technology, Shinshu University, Tokida 3‑15‑1, Ueda, Nagano 386‑8567, Japan
Chunqing Niu
Graduate School of Medicine, Science and Technology, Shinshu University, Tokida 3‑15‑1, Ueda, Nagano 386‑8567, Japan
Xin Zhang
Graduate School of Medicine, Science and Technology, Shinshu University, Tokida 3‑15‑1, Ueda, Nagano 386‑8567, Japan
Deqian Yang
Graduate School of Science and Technology, Shinshu University, Tokida 3‑15‑1, Ueda, Nagano 386‑8567, Japan
Weiyang Gu
Graduate School of Science and Technology, Shinshu University, Tokida 3‑15‑1, Ueda, Nagano 386‑8567, Japan
Guangyu Zhang
College of Textile and Clothing, Nantong University, Nantong 226019, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China
Haifeng Zhang
College of Textile and Clothing, Nantong University, Nantong 226019, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China
Chunhong Zhu
Graduate School of Medicine, Science and Technology, Shinshu University, Tokida 3‑15‑1, Ueda, Nagano 386‑8567, Japan
Jian Shi
Graduate School of Medicine, Science and Technology, Shinshu University, Tokida 3‑15‑1, Ueda, Nagano 386‑8567, Japan

Corresponding Author: Jian Shi

shi@shinshu-u.ac.jp

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 18 (2026), Article Number: 435

Abstract

The global shortage of freshwater is becoming increasingly severe, necessitating the development of green and efficient water treatment technologies to address challenges in high-salinity environments. Inspired by the salt excretion mechanism of marine fish gills, a molecular and interfacial synergistic construction (MISC) strategy was applied to build carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS) and sodium alginate (SA) all biomass aerogel evaporators with high strength and excellent salt resistance. At the molecular level, the abundant charged and hydrophilic groups endow the aerogel with strong ion-regulation and water-affinity capabilities, giving rise to two interfacial processes: Donnan-based ionic exclusion and a water-film effect that drives salt removal through interfacial flow. With this dual-effect synergy, the evaporator achieved a high evaporation rate of 2.88 kg m−2 h−1 under 1 sun and operated stably for 24 h in 20 wt% saline water without salt deposition. The interpenetrated network of rigid CMCS and flexible SA further provides excellent mechanical properties and structural stability. Importantly, the evaporator is entirely composed of natural biomass materials, allowing for low-cost scalable fabrication with good biosafety and biodegradability. Overall, this work establishes a gill-inspired dual-effect framework for overcoming salt accumulation and offers a sustainable and efficient route for solar-driven desalination under extreme salinity.


Highlights:
1 A fish gill-inspired molecular and interfacial synergistic construction strategy enables a dual-effect salt rejection framework for solar evaporation.
2 Synergistic coupling of Donnan exclusion and water-film driven Marangoni flow sustains interfacial hydration and continuous salt removal.
3 The all biomass carboxymethyl chitosan/sodium alginate aerogel achieved 2.88 kg m-2 h-1 evaporation and stable operation in 20 wt% brine without salt deposition.

Keywords

Gill-inspired design Dual-effect synergy All-biomass aerogel Salt-resilient solar evaporation Eco-safe Sustainable desalination
Liu, Nuo, Chunqing Niu, Xin Zhang, Deqian Yang, Weiyang Gu, Guangyu Zhang, Haifeng Zhang, Chunhong Zhu, and Jian Shi. 2026. “Gill-Inspired Dual-Effect All-Biomass Aerogel Evaporator Overcoming Salt Accumulation for Sustainable Solar Desalination”. Nano-Micro Letters 18 (July):435. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-026-02284-8.
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