# Soochow University prototype yields 1.64 liters of water in 8 hours

- Published: 2026-11-07 09:29 UTC
- Section: Planet › Ocean & water
- Tags: solar water desalination, interlayer electrothermal evaporator, portable water purification, Fresnel lens solar concentrator, off grid water treatment
- URL: https://realtech.media/news/rt-6ec81cf7f53e08335a82063b_soochow_university_prototype/

**Engineers combined an interlayer electrothermal evaporator with concentrated solar power to purify contaminated water at high flux.**

![Soochow University prototype yields 1.64 liters of water in 8 hours](https://realtech.media/media/2026/11/81e241a47a7e0281.jpg)
*pv-magazine.com*

Researchers from Soochow University have developed a compact, solar-powered water purification prototype that produces 1.64 liters of drinking water within 8 hours. Operating entirely off-grid, the system employs an evaporation surface area of only 30.72 cm² to extract potable water from challenging sources, including seawater, oily mixtures, sediment-laden streams, and strongly acidic liquids. The findings were published in nature.com [1].

## Interlayer thermal architecture

Conventional electrothermal desalination systems rely on volumetric heating, where an electric element warms the entire liquid reservoir. This approach causes significant thermal dissipation into the surrounding fluid and atmosphere. To resolve this, the team designed an interlayer electrothermal evaporator (IEE) where the heating element is embedded directly within an internal layer of the evaporating structure [1]. Confining the thermal energy strictly to the vaporization interface reduced heat losses and energy consumption by nearly two-thirds compared to bulk heating configurations.

## Dual-mode solar harvesting

The portable apparatus integrates two separate mechanisms to harvest solar energy. Foldable photovoltaic cells generate the electricity required to drive the internal electrothermal layer, while a foldable Fresnel lens concentrates sunlight directly onto the evaporation surface [1]. This hybrid photo- and electrothermal approach directs concentrated thermal energy into the active liquid boundary layer.

Outdoor testing demonstrated an apparent energy efficiency of 93.31% and a freshwater flux of 69.46 l m⁻² h⁻¹ [1]. When tested with real seawater under concentrated illumination, the evaporation rate exceeded 90 kg m⁻² h⁻¹. The resulting vapor condenses into purified water, leaving salts and complex contaminants behind without requiring external fuel supplies or fixed power infrastructure.

## Sources

1. [nature.com](https://www.nature.com/articles/s44221-026-00734-6)
2. [pv-magazine.com](https://www.pv-magazine.com/2026/11/07/portable-solar-powered-system-produces-1-64-liters-of-drinking-water-in-8-hours)

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Source: RealTech, realtech.media — https://realtech.media/news/rt-6ec81cf7f53e08335a82063b_soochow_university_prototype/