COmposite nanomaterials coupling Photothermal Evaporation and photocatalysis for durable water purification systems
The COPE research project is dedicated to the development of water purification systems based on next-generation solar evaporators, integrating photothermal elements to enhance evaporation efficiency and photocatalytic elements to improve water quality and extend the device’s service life by preventing fouling and contamination.
The project, coordinated by Prof. Daniela Meroni from the University of Milan (Principal Investigator), is carried out in collaboration with Politecnico di Milano (unit leader: Prof. Maria Vittoria Diamanti) and the University of Trieste (unit leader: Prof. Vanni Lughi).
The research activity has a duration of two years and is structured into several phases:
- Development of photocatalytic membranes based on titanium dioxide for water purification during evaporation and for reducing device fouling
- Fabrication of core–shell quantum dots with photothermal properties to increase the evaporative performance of the device through better exploitation of solar energy, while also enhancing the photocatalytic efficiency of photocatalytic membranes
- Desing of the solar evaporator incorporating both photocatalytic and photothermal elements and evaluation of the evaporation and purification performance of the assembled device, both through accelerated laboratory tests and under real solar irradiation conditions
The COPE research project is co-funded by the European Union – Next Generation EU, PNRR – Mission 4 “Education and Research” – Component C2, Investment 1.1 “Fund for the National Research Program and Projects of Relevant National Interest (PRIN)” D.D. No. 1409/2022 “PRIN 2022 PNRR Call”
