Solar-powered desalination is a cost-effective technology to produce drinkable, potable water using energy from the sun. However, its use in domestic and industrial applications is minimal because of its low daily production. This study produced a novel nanoporous Cr-Mn-Fe oxide nanocoating by modulable chemical oxidation at a temperature of around 90 ℃ in an acidic mixture of 21–34 wt% conc.H2SO4, 37.5–53 wt% distilled water & 15–30 wt% sodium dichromate salt on a mirror-polished SS202 sheet to act as a basin liner for the nanocoated solar still (NCSS). The optical characterization of nanostructure coating was done using Cary 5000 spectrophotometer and FTIR spectrophotometer for absorptivity (90%) and emissivity (14.4% at 300 ℃), respectively. It was found that the nanocoated solar still (NCSS) produced 36.36%, 28.62%, and 26.27% more distillate yield when compared with conventional solar still (CSS) for 1 cm, 2 cm, and 3 cm depth of water, respectively. Enviro-economic studies, energy matrices evaluation, and water quality analysis were performed to compute greenhouse gases emissions, carbon dioxide mitigation, carbon credit gained, energy-payback time (EPT), energy production factor (EPF), life cycle conversion efficiency (LCCE), and suitability of distilled water for drinking. The cost per liter (CPL) of desalinated water for NCSS was inferred to be 15.6% more economical than for a CSS and 81% more economical than packaged drinking water in India.