writer：Zihan Huo, Mei Xiao, Zeen Xu, Yongqian Fu, Xianqiang Xiong, Qi Wang, Ru Jian
keywords：壳聚糖
source：期刊
specific source：International Journal of Biological Macromolecules
Issue time：2026年
Conventional chitosan-based solar interfacial evaporators (CS-SIEs) suffer from insufficient mechanical strength, structure instability, and salt/pollutants accumulation, limiting their practical applications. To address these challenges, a ZnIn2S4/MWCNTs-chitosan@melamine sponge (ZMC@MS) evaporator was developed via a two-step synthesis strategy. This designed ZMC@MS integrates four functional components to synergistically enhance structure integrity, light absorption, photothermal conversion, water evaporation and photocatalytic performance. Under 1 sun irradiation, ZMC@MS achieved an evaporation rate of 1.70 kg·m?2·h?1 with a 99.9% ion-reject rate for Na+, Mg2+, K+ and Ca2+ ions. Additionally, ZMC@MS showed excellent photocatalytic activity, degrading 98.1% of congo red within 150 min under simulated sunlight irradiation. By coupling solar interfacial evaporation with advanced oxidation processes, this work expands the potential of CS-SIEs and provide a novel design strategy for multifunctional evaporators capable of simultaneous freshwater production and wastewater treatment in complex polluted water systems.