Solar thermal resonant energy exchange desalination (STREED) for 24-hour, membrane-free, off-grid water treatment

Solar thermal resonant energy exchange desalination (STREED) for 24-hour, membrane-free, off-grid water treatment | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Solar thermal resonant energy exchange desalination (STREED) for 24-hour, membrane-free, off-grid water treatment Alessandro Alabastri, William Schmid, Aleida Machorro-Ortiz, Qian Ye, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4779190/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 14 May, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Water → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Freshwater scarcity is a pressing global issue exacerbated by climate change and growing populations. Current desalination technologies all face limitations: reverse osmosis requires grid electrical power and specialized membranes, thermal desalination is inefficient, and membrane systems are prone to fouling. Here we introduce Solar Thermal Resonant Energy Exchange Desalination (STREED), a robust, membrane-free and efficient solar thermal desalination approach. Utilizing the principle of Resonant Energy Transfer, the distillation efficiency can be maximized by matching the heat fluxes between interacting air and water fluids. Dynamic tuning of the flow rates in response to varying solar intensities significantly increases efficiency, extending freshwater production over 24-hour/day. We predict week-long freshwater productivity increases of 70% with an average Specific Water Productivity (SWP) between ~3 and ~5 L/kWh, depending on available solar irradiation. STREED adapts to fluctuating solar inputs, offering a scalable solution for decentralized, off-grid water treatment, crucial for remote communities facing water scarcity. Physical sciences/Energy science and technology/Energy harvesting Scientific community and society/Water resources Physical sciences/Energy science and technology/Renewable energy/Solar energy Full Text Additional Declarations Yes there is potential Competing Interest. The authors declare the following competing interests: P.N., P.D.D., N.J.H., and A.A. are co-inventors on a on a provisional patent relating to the resonant energy tranfer concept. P.D.D. and A.A. have a small share in Localized Water Solutions Inc., a start-up aiming to commercialize thermal desalination systems. Supplementary Files NATWATER241288AlabastriSupplementaryInformation.docx Supplementary Information Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 14 May, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Water → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-4779190","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":340799555,"identity":"e4ab1a12-8f42-42c3-8332-36ca705b801b","order_by":0,"name":"Alessandro Alabastri","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6180-8052","institution":"Rice University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Alessandro","middleName":"","lastName":"Alabastri","suffix":""},{"id":340799556,"identity":"aed24f1a-e102-4f7a-9553-563d8199fd13","order_by":1,"name":"William Schmid","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Rice University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"William","middleName":"","lastName":"Schmid","suffix":""},{"id":340799557,"identity":"98fa9446-f097-4052-beec-3a2e82bbae22","order_by":2,"name":"Aleida Machorro-Ortiz","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Rice University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Aleida","middleName":"","lastName":"Machorro-Ortiz","suffix":""},{"id":340799558,"identity":"7b61a8ac-27ce-4f0a-a81c-5f53caed6965","order_by":3,"name":"Qian Ye","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Rice University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Qian","middleName":"","lastName":"Ye","suffix":""},{"id":340799559,"identity":"0726ec19-15a5-4112-b534-c684d4326280","order_by":4,"name":"Peter Nordlander","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1633-2937","institution":"Rice University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Peter","middleName":"","lastName":"Nordlander","suffix":""},{"id":340799560,"identity":"414af688-d8e6-4952-bc1e-b661bacde57c","order_by":5,"name":"Pratiksha Dongare","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Rice University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Pratiksha","middleName":"","lastName":"Dongare","suffix":""},{"id":340799561,"identity":"3feb748d-c1d6-46aa-ac01-8266fdc0f2e1","order_by":6,"name":"Naomi Halas","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Rice University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Naomi","middleName":"","lastName":"Halas","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2024-07-22 05:00:15","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-4779190/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4779190/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[{"content":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s44221-025-00438-3","type":"published","date":"2025-05-14T04:00:00+00:00"}],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":82775317,"identity":"da309e50-01c5-4a04-8155-279f45534728","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-15 07:11:41","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1208361,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"NATWATER241288AlabastriArticleFile.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4779190/v1_covered_d5511467-ce31-47e9-b2b9-e251453a766d.pdf"},{"id":62820227,"identity":"a803d291-96c8-47e5-be08-9f825e15e64c","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-08-20 00:07:28","extension":"docx","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":3658339,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eSupplementary Information\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"NATWATER241288AlabastriSupplementaryInformation.docx","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4779190/v1/b52c519d5ce6d1b835ab010c.docx"}],"financialInterests":"\u003cb\u003eYes\u003c/b\u003e there is potential Competing Interest.\nThe authors declare the following competing interests: P.N., P.D.D., N.J.H., and A.A. are co-inventors on a on a provisional patent relating to the resonant energy tranfer concept. 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