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Abstract
This literature review covers more than 150 scientific publications from 2014–2023 on improving the efficiency of solar water desalination devices based on porous materials with capillary structure. Analysis reveals that hydrophilic fabric and ceramic porous materials can expand the evaporation surface 3–5 times through capillary forces. Modern systems based on the heat localization principle can achieve solar energy utilization coefficients exceeding 90%. The identified research gap includes the insufficient study of the integrated effects of pore size, capillary tube density, and device geometry on overall system performance.
Following the PRISMA protocol, 156 publications were selected from 847 identified studies (2014–2023). Six types of capillary porous materials were evaluated under 1000 W/m² solar irradiance. Evaporation efficiency was calculated using η = (ṁ · hfg)/(G · A). A Pearson correlation heatmap was constructed to visualize device–material compatibility across 8×8 combinations.
Hydrophilic fabric achieved the highest correlation with solar desalination devices (97%) and an evaporation efficiency of 91–95%. The ceramic + aerogel composite reached 7.3 l/m²·day water productivity. Aerogel layers reduced heat losses by 22%. Five key research gaps were identified, including long-term durability and integrated optimization of pore size with device geometry.
References
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