Dynamic regulation in solar interfacial evaporation

Solar interfacial evaporation (SIE) has emerged as a promising strategy for sustainable water purification by localizing solar-driven photothermal conversion at the air–liquid interface. However, most conventional SIE systems rely on static structural optimization and therefore exhibit limited adaptability under fluctuating environmental conditions. This Review presents SIE as a dynamically regulated multiphysics system governed by the coupled interactions among energy flow, mass transport, boundary-layer transport, and material responses. We summarize recent advances in dynamic regulation of light harvesting, thermal management, water transport, salt evolution, and vapor transport, and further discuss their integration through energy–mass coupling, water–ion coupling, material-mediated coupling, and hierarchical coupling. Finally, we outline future directions toward predictive multiphysics models, adaptive responsive materials, intelligent system integration, and scalable real-world deployment. By shifting the focus from optimizing individual transport processes to coordinating their interactions, this Review provides a unified framework for developing adaptive solar-driven water purification and resource recovery systems.