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In recent years, direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) has been shown to be more effective for desalination of high-salinity feed streams compared to the more conventional reverse osmosis process. DCMD works by utilizing the vapor pressure difference between a heated feed stream and a colder permeate stream to drive water vapor from the feed side to the permeate side. A noted way of increasing the temperature gradient between the two sides and/or adding heat to the feed side is to directly expose the membrane to solar flux. One approach for absorbing energy within the membrane is through the addition of solar absorbing nanoparticles. While bulk solar absorption can be achieved easily with carbon or graphite, it is also possible to add nanoparticles that selectively absorb limited portions of the solar spectrum. By combining a selective nanoparticle membrane in conjunction with a photovoltaic (PV …