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Emerging Topics in Future Energy Materials

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "D1: Advanced Energy Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 29 January 2025 | Viewed by 7269

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry and CQ-VR, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal
Interests: electrochemistry; micro-fuel cells; chemical sensors

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from human activities strengthen the greenhouse effect, global warming, and cause climate change. The predominant source of emissions is carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels, coal, oil, and natural gas. Thus, energy materials will play a central role in successfully building Europe’s clean technology value chains and meeting the EU’s 2050 climate-neutrality goal. In the short term, the renewable-based electrification of the building/construction sector, transport, and power is the most cost-effective way to decarbonize the European economy and contribute considerably to reaching the EU energy and climate targets. Electric/hydrogen mobility, solar-based solutions and nearly-zero energy buildings (NZEBs), and the improvement of water and air quality are some of new sustainable solutions proposed to create a healthy and pleasant environment in urban areas. To achieve the EU energy and climate targets, new advanced, sustainable, lead free, non-toxic, energy materials, produced by green methods if possible, from natural sources or biowaste are needed. In the wake of supply interruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine, Europe’s lack of resilience, for example, when it comes to metals needs has become a strategic concern. The recovery, reuse, and recycling of metals will also be extraordinarily important.

Dr. Rosa Rego
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • sensors and biosensors
  • solar energy harvesting
  • luminescent solar concentrators, photovoltaics
  • smart windows
  • smart cities
  • electric /hydrogen mobility

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 15483 KiB  
Article
Continuous Supercritical Water Impregnation Method for the Preparation of Metal Oxide on Activated Carbon Composite Materials
by Florentina Maxim, Elena-Ecaterina Toma, Giuseppe-Stefan Stoian, Cristian Contescu, Irina Atkinson, Christian Ludwig and Speranta Tanasescu
Energies 2024, 17(4), 913; https://doi.org/10.3390/en17040913 - 16 Feb 2024
Viewed by 1000
Abstract
Metal oxide (MexOy) nanomaterials are used as catalysts and/or sorbents in processes taking place in supercritical water (scH2O), which is the “green” solvent needed to obtain energy-relevant products. Their properties are significantly influenced by the synthesis method [...] Read more.
Metal oxide (MexOy) nanomaterials are used as catalysts and/or sorbents in processes taking place in supercritical water (scH2O), which is the “green” solvent needed to obtain energy-relevant products. Their properties are significantly influenced by the synthesis method used to prepare active MexOy. In addition, the use of supported MexOy nanoparticles is more practical and cost-effective in terms of their performance maintenance. Within this context, the present study reports on the preparation of carbon-supported ZnO and CuO composites using an innovative scH2O impregnation method. Metal oxides were impregnated on a carbon (C) support using a continuous-flow tubular reactor. The results show that impregnation in scH2O is a promising approach for the preparation of ZnO/C and CuO/C composite materials. This one-step synthesis method, in a continuous flow, uses neither a seed layer nor a mineralizer, and it needs substantially lower preparation times than conventional impregnation methods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Topics in Future Energy Materials)
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12 pages, 3448 KiB  
Article
Analyzing the Effect of Nano-Sized Conductive Additive Content on Cathode Electrode Performance in Sulfide All-Solid-State Lithium-Ion Batteries
by Jae Hong Choi, Sumyeong Choi, Tom James Embleton, Kyungmok Ko, Kashif Saleem Saqib, Jahanzaib Ali, Mina Jo, Junhyeok Hwang, Sungwoo Park, Minhu Kim, Mingi Hwang, Heesoo Lim and Pilgun Oh
Energies 2024, 17(1), 109; https://doi.org/10.3390/en17010109 - 24 Dec 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1753
Abstract
All-solid-state lithium-ion batteries (ASSLBs) have recently received significant attention due to their exceptional energy/power densities, inherent safety, and long-term electrochemical stability. However, to achieve energy- and power-dense ASSLBs, the cathode composite electrodes require optimum ionic and electrical pathways and hence the development of [...] Read more.
All-solid-state lithium-ion batteries (ASSLBs) have recently received significant attention due to their exceptional energy/power densities, inherent safety, and long-term electrochemical stability. However, to achieve energy- and power-dense ASSLBs, the cathode composite electrodes require optimum ionic and electrical pathways and hence the development of electrode designs that facilitate such requirements is necessary. Among the various available conductive materials, carbon black (CB) is typically considered as a suitable carbon additive for enhancing electrode conductivity due to its affordable price and electrical-network-enhancing properties. In this study, we examined the effect of different weight percentages (wt%) of nano-sized CB as a conductive additive within a cathode composite made up of Ni-rich cathode material (LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2) and solid electrolyte (Li6PS5Cl). Composites including 3 wt%, 5 wt%, and 7 wt% CB were produced, achieving capacity retentions of 66.1%, 65.4%, and 44.6% over 50 cycles at 0.5 C. Despite an increase in electrical conductivity of the 7 wt% CB sample, a significantly lower capacity retention was observed. This was attributed to the increased resistance at the solid electrolyte/cathode material interface, resulting from the presence of excessive CB. This study confirms that an excessive amount of nano-sized conductive material can affect the interfacial resistance between the solid electrolyte and the cathode active material, which is ultimately more important to the electrochemical performance than the electrical pathways. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Topics in Future Energy Materials)
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14 pages, 1345 KiB  
Article
Optimizing Energy Efficiency of Dielectric Materials’ Electrodischarge Dispersion as One Sustainable Development Green Trend
by Antonina Malyushevskaya, Serhii Petrychenko, Krzysztof Przystupa, Olena Mitryasova, Michał Majka and Orest Kochan
Energies 2023, 16(20), 7098; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16207098 - 15 Oct 2023
Viewed by 1524
Abstract
Increasing the energy efficiency of production processes is closely related to minimizing the impact on the environment and is one of the priorities of the concept of sustainable development. Electric discharge is an effective tool for multilevel grinding of non-metallic materials in various [...] Read more.
Increasing the energy efficiency of production processes is closely related to minimizing the impact on the environment and is one of the priorities of the concept of sustainable development. Electric discharge is an effective tool for multilevel grinding of non-metallic materials in various working fluids and obtaining coarse and fine suspensions. We introduce the technique for calculating the electrotechnological parameters necessary for energy-efficient electric discharge dispersion. This technique considers the strength characteristics of the crushed material (dispersed phase) and the electrical conductivity of the working fluid (dispersed medium). It is also essential to consider the energy stored in the capacitor bank, the energy criterion, the critical value of the working fluid’s electrical strength, the radius of the high-voltage electrode point, and the distance from the discharge channel axis to the disintegration object. All this allows obtaining a given granulometric composition of the dispersed phase with minimal energy consumption. Experiments confirmed the validity of the proposed calculation technique. We obtained the water-brown coal suspension with a given dispersion two times faster and consumed four times less energy in comparison with the known methods that did not take into account the electrical conductivity of the working liquid and the mechanical strength of the crushed material. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Topics in Future Energy Materials)
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Review

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15 pages, 2839 KiB  
Review
Novel Materials for Semi-Transparent Organic Solar Cells
by Muhammad Azhar Ansari, Giovanni Ciampi and Sergio Sibilio
Energies 2024, 17(2), 333; https://doi.org/10.3390/en17020333 - 9 Jan 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2237
Abstract
The rapid development of photovoltaic technology has driven the search for novel materials that can improve the cost-effectiveness and efficiency of solar cells. Organic semiconductors offer unique optical tunability and transparency, allowing customization for the absorption of specific optical spectra like near-infrared radiation. [...] Read more.
The rapid development of photovoltaic technology has driven the search for novel materials that can improve the cost-effectiveness and efficiency of solar cells. Organic semiconductors offer unique optical tunability and transparency, allowing customization for the absorption of specific optical spectra like near-infrared radiation. Through the molecular engineering of electron donors and acceptors, these materials can be optimized for targeted optical selectivity. This adaptability enables the development of efficient energy-harvesting devices tailored for specific spectral regions. Consequently, organic semiconductors present a promising avenue for specialized applications such as semi-transparent organic solar cells. This review offers a detailed summary of the latest developments in novel organic semiconductor materials, focusing on design principles and synthesis of materials in the context of semi-transparent organic solar cells. Optimization of molecular architecture, photovoltaic performance, and the optoelectronic properties of these materials has been explored, highlighting their potential for next-generation solar energy conversion. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Topics in Future Energy Materials)
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