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A research team at Soochow University in China has built a portable solar-powered device capable of turning turbid, saline, oily and highly acidic water into drinking water, according to pv magazine. The prototype yielded 1.64 liters of clean water over eight hours using an evaporation surface of just 30.72 square centimeters, an area smaller than a standard bank card.
The system relies on electrothermal evaporation: an electrically powered heating element warms a surface that absorbs contaminated water, causing the water to evaporate. The vapor is then collected and condensed into clean water while salts and other contaminants stay behind in the source water.
The central innovation is an interlayer electrothermal evaporator. Rather than heating the full volume of the wet material, the researchers placed the heating element inside an internal layer of the structure, which limits heat escaping to the surrounding water and air. The study reported that this approach reduced heat losses and energy consumption by close to two-thirds relative to a conventional electrothermal evaporator that heats the material volumetrically.
The device draws on two forms of solar energy at once. Foldable solar cells generate electricity for the electrothermal evaporator, while a foldable Fresnel lens concentrates sunlight directly onto the evaporation surface. The study did not disclose the rated capacity or electrical specifications of the photovoltaic system.
When concentrated solar energy is taken into account, the device reached an apparent energy efficiency of 93.31% and a water production rate of 69.46 liters per square meter per hour. Under concentrated sunlight, evaporation rates exceeded 90 kilograms per square meter per hour.
Outdoor trials with the small-scale prototype were carried out on selected days in January and February 2025. The team tested sediment-laden water, oil-contaminated water, highly saline wastewater, strongly acidic water and real seawater, analyzing samples before and after treatment.
Because the device combines photovoltaic modules with an optical concentration system, it can run without a grid connection or an external fuel supply. The researchers indicated the setup could suit locations where conventional water infrastructure is damaged or unavailable, and could serve as a portable treatment option in emergencies such as floods, earthquakes and conflicts where safe drinking water access is disrupted.
The findings were published in Nature Water under a title describing a solar-operated interlayer electrothermal evaporator for instant high-flux freshwater production across multiple scenarios. The researchers noted that the results establish the feasibility of the concept, but that larger systems and longer-term testing in real-world conditions are needed before large-scale deployment can be assessed.
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