ABSTRACT The escalating global freshwater crisis has intensified the search for efficient and sustainable desalination technologies. Solar‐assisted interfacial steam generation (ISSG) has emerged as a promising strategy because it localizes heat at the water–air interface, enabling efficient solar‐driven evaporation. The effectiveness of ISSG depends strongly on the properties of the photothermal materials used. Metal‐organic frameworks (MOFs) and MXenes have attracted attention because their complementary features can jointly enhance desalination performance. MOFs provide tunable porosity, high surface area, and versatile surface chemistry that promote water transport and mass transfer, whereas MXenes offer strong broadband light absorption, excellent electrical conductivity, and hydrophilic surfaces beneficial for photothermal conversion. However, each material alone faces limitations, including the low photothermal efficiency and structural instability of MOFs, and the restacking tendency and oxidation susceptibility of MXenes. This review comprehensively evaluates MOF–MXene hybrids as photothermal platforms, emphasizing their synergistic structural and functional integration. Hybridization strategies, including in situ growth under hydrothermal or solvothermal conditions and layer‐by‐layer assembly, are critically discussed in relation to interfacial interactions and desalination performance. The review analyzes structure–transport property relationships and compares MOFs, MXenes, and MOF–MXene hybrids in evaporation rate, solar‐to‐vapor efficiency, salt rejection, and saline stability, while outlining challenges and future design directions.
Shah et al. (2026) studied this question.