Solar-driven desalination, which concentrates solar thermal energy at the water surface for evaporating, is a promising solution to water scarcity. During solar desalination, the light absorber produces a high temperature surface under sunlight irradiation, while bottom water below the absorbers always keeps a low temperature. Consequently, a temperature difference (TD) is formed between absorber surface and bottom water. According to Seebeck effect, the voltage difference will be generated once the TD presents between the two ends of semiconductors. Herein, we demonstrate a light-to-heat-to-electricity conversion device with bilayer MXene-based monoliths combining with n-/p-type semiconductors that can efficiently extract freshwater (5–8 L•m⁻²•d⁻¹) from seawater while simultaneously having a derived extra voltage of ~0.3 V under outdoor natural sunlight (0.91 kW•m⁻²). Notably, TD-induced electricity can be enlarged and utilized on-site by connecting devices in series without prejudice to freshwater output. By taking advantage of renewable solar energy and seawater (or contaminated), abundant resources on Earth, this device can provide the freshwater and electricity for basic needs in various off-grid and/or resource constrained areas simultaneously.

太阳能驱动的淡化技术将太阳能热能集中在水表面进行蒸发，这是解决缺水的有希望的解决方案。在太阳能脱盐期间，光吸收剂在日光照射下会产生高温表面，而吸收剂下方的底部水始终保持低温。因此，在吸收器表面和底部水之间形成温差（TD）。根据塞贝克效应，一旦TD在半导体的两端之间出现，就会产生电压差。本文中，我们演示了一种光-热-电转换装置，该装置具有双层MXene基单块与n- / p型半导体相结合，可以有效地提取淡水（5-8 L•m ^-2•d ^-1）来自海水，同时在室外自然日光（0.91 kW•m ^-2）下具有约0.3 V的额外电压。值得注意的是，在不影响淡水输出的情况下，通过串联连接设备可以扩大TD感应的电并在现场使用。通过利用可再生的太阳能和海水（或被污染的），地球上丰富的资源，该设备可以同时为各种离网和/或资源受限的地区提供满足基本需求的淡水和电力。