Abstract
Solar-driven interfacial evaporation is a promising solution to address global freshwater scarcity, with woody biomass-based evaporators standing out for their sustainability and cost-effectiveness. However, current woody biomass-based systems often suffer from inefficient water management and suboptimal photothermal performance. Herein, we develop a dual-function lignin-engineered reconstituted wood framework strategy, achieving both compositional and structural optimization of woody biomass to enhance its evaporation performance via water management and thermal management. By partially retaining and reconfiguring lignin within the woody biomass framework, a higher fraction of loosely bound “intermediate water” with reduced evaporation enthalpy is generated while preserving the water-pumping capability. Concurrently, the extracted lignin is upcycled via laser-induced graphitization into a broadband photothermal layer composed of hierarchical graphene/graphitic carbon structures with solar absorptivity exceeding 95%. This synergistic design results in the E-150 solar evaporator, which achieves an evaporation rate of 2.24 kg m⁻² h⁻¹ and a photothermal conversion efficiency of 91.52% under one-sun irradiation, surpassing most reported wood-based evaporators. Moreover, the retained lignin sustains multiscale channel integrity, imparting strong salt resistance, high recyclability, and robust purification capabilities. This integrated biomass valorization strategy provides a scalable, low-cost, and eco-friendly route for high-performance solar desalination and sustainable water-energy applications.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (22308029) (X. S.), the Knowledge Innovation Program of Wuhan-Basi Research (2023020201010072) (C. C.), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (691000003) (C. C.), and the 5·5 Engineering Research & Innovation Team Project of Beijing Forestry University (No. BLRC 2023B05) (T. Y.). Additionally, the authors appreciate the assistance of the Innovation Platform for High-Value Utilization of Forest Resources at Beijing Forestry University. We thank Insight Vision for their professional assistance in creating the three-dimensional rendering for Fig. 1.
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T.Y., C.C., X.S., and B.W. conceived the concept, processing, and structure details. B.W., Y.H., and Z.Y. performed the design and preparation of the evaporator. B.W. and Y.H. carried out the evaporation test. B.W., Y.H., and Z.Y. co-wrote the manuscript. T.Y., C.C., and X.S. supervised the work and revised the manuscript. J.W. provided guidance on the structural analysis of lignocellulose. Q.S. provided assistance in the enthalpy of the evaporation test of water. X.Z. participated in large-scale sample preparation and outdoor evaporation tests. All authors commented on the submitted version of the manuscript.
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Wang, B., He, Y., Yang, Z. et al. Reconstitution of woody biomass framework via dual-functional lignin engineering toward efficient and salt-resistant solar desalination. Nat Commun (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-70270-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-70270-0
