Tapping into solar energy seems to be a viable and sustainable solution for the ongoing global challenges of water scarcity and clean energy shortage. However, the natural mechanism of solar energy-driven water evaporation is often compromised by low evaporation rate and water and solar absorption spectrum mismatch. Therefore, localized heating on the water vapor-liquid interface by light-absorbing materials, known as photothermal materials, has been proposed. This allows the harvesting of energy from the full solar spectrum and high efficiency of light-to-heat conversion. With the emerging advances of photothermal nanomaterials and the urgent demand for a green transition of water treatment technology, the establishment of a photothermal-driven membrane distillation system has been reinvigorated, as seen by the number of publications recently. The efficiency of light absorption and light-to-heat conversion of photothermal materials are critical factors in determining the membrane performances. This review aims to assess the state-of-the-art photothermal materials, including innovative modifications that have been made. The second part is devoted to the emerging aspects and new directions of using these photothermal materials for the development of photothermal membranes. Lastly, the prospects of photothermal membrane for clean water production in the near future are also discussed.

利用太阳能似乎是应对水资源短缺和清洁能源短缺的持续全球挑战的可行且可持续的解决方案。然而，太阳能驱动的水蒸发的自然机制往往受到低蒸发率以及水和太阳能吸收光谱不匹配的影响。因此，已经提出了通过光吸收材料（称为光热材料）在水汽-液体界面上进行局部加热。这允许从全太阳光谱中收集能量并实现高效的光热转换。随着光热纳米材料的不断进步和对水处理技术绿色转型的迫切需求，光热驱动的膜蒸馏系统的建立重新焕发了活力，正如最近的出版物数量所见。光热材料的光吸收效率和光热转换效率是决定膜性能的关键因素。本综述旨在评估最先进的光热材料，包括已进行的创新修改。第二部分致力于利用这些光热材料开发光热膜的新兴方面和新方向。最后，还讨论了光热膜在不久的将来用于清洁水生产的前景。第二部分致力于利用这些光热材料开发光热膜的新兴方面和新方向。最后，还讨论了光热膜在不久的将来用于清洁水生产的前景。第二部分致力于利用这些光热材料开发光热膜的新兴方面和新方向。最后，还讨论了光热膜在不久的将来用于清洁水生产的前景。