Design, Analysis and Optimization of Plasmonic Nanoparticles for Steam and Heat Generation Application under Solar Irradiance

Abstract

Abstract Metal nanoparticles (NPs) with subwavelength dimensions exhibit plasmonic phenomena in resonance frequency and can absorb a portion of light non-radiatively and thermally. This property of NPs can be used in various applications such as seawater desalination, where the thermal power generated by them can be utilized. In this paper, we have designed and analyzed NPs to achieve maximum absorption and heat generation under solar irradiance. The NPs were arranged on a glass substrate in the most optimal pattern to obtain the highest possible absorption and heat generation. We utilized a numerical method to determine the total absorbed power of the NPs under solar irradiance. The shape, material, size and arrangement and interaction of the NPs determine their optical behavior, and, as a result, their thermal behavior. Therefore, we designed cylindrical, cubic, triangular, and hexagram-shaped NPs with the same volume of metal, choosing the material from noble metals such as Ag, Au, Cu, and Al. In the first step, we calculated the absorption cross-section of NPs using the Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) method. We then multiplied the solar irradiance intensity by the cross-section obtained in the first step. In the final step, we integrated the graph obtained in the solar spectrum to obtain the total absorbed power of the NPs. To determine the best arrangement period of the NPs, we utilized the Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) method. This algorithm helped us find the period with the highest absorbed power. Aluminum hexagram nanoparticles, having the highest absorbed power and cost-effectiveness in manufacturing, were considered as the main candidates for the structure.