Recently we reported that light-absorbing nanoparticles dispersed in water are capable of generating steam at remarkably high efficiency.[1]   As we study this effect, some unusual aspects of nanoscale heat transfer that challenge our traditional picture of this process are revealed.  By studying this process at the individual nanoparticle level, we are able to observe the generation of a vapor envelope around the illuminated nanoparticle and determine its properties, including the temperature increase at the nanoparticle surface as the vapor bubble is generated. [2]  For nanoparticles dispersed in an isotropic medium, nanoparticle-bubble complexes achieve buoyancy, creating light-driven nonthermal gradients in the fluid as steam is produced. When light-absorbing nanoparticles are dispersed in a fluid mixture, a solar distillation process, strongly favoring the more volatile component in the fluid mixture, can be achieved.  Both nanoparticle-enabled solar steam and solar distillation are processes that lend themselves quite naturally to applications in energy, with a focus on compact and off-grid solutions for a variety of energy challenges.[1] Oara Neumann, Alexander S. Urban, Jared Day, Surbhi Lal, Peter Nordlander, and N. J. Halas, �Solar Vapor Generation enabled by nanoparticles�, ACS Nano 7, 42-49 (2013).[2] Zheyu Fang, Yurong Zhen, Oara Neumann, Albert Polman, F. J. Garcia de Abajo, Peter Nordlander, and N. J Halas, �Evolution of light-induced vapour generation at a liquid-immersed metallic nanoparticle�, Nano Letters, articles ASAP.

Solar steam: Discovery, mechanism, and applications in energy

246th National Meeting (2013)

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