Nanostructured Materials for Solar-Driven Fuel Synthesis: Harnessing Sunlight for Green Energy and Energy-Dense Chemicals
A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991). This special issue belongs to the section "Solar Energy and Solar Cells".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 February 2026 | Viewed by 972
Special Issue Editor
Interests: development of high performance nanostructured and nanocomposite materials based on superthin/thin/thick films using novel and advanced materials synthesis methods for solar cells; energy storage; optoelectronics applications; non-vacuum chemical vapour deposition technology
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Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Solar energy offers a sustainable pathway to produce carbon-neutral fuels, but its intermittent nature demands innovations in nanoscale light-harvesting, photocatalysts, nanodevices, and nature-inspired nanosystems. This issue focuses on nanomaterial-enabled solutions for solar-driven fuel production, bridging fundamental research and scalable applications. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Solar as the Primary Energy Source
- Nanomaterials for direct solar-to-fuel conversion.
- Design of broadband light-absorbing nanostructures (e.g., plasmonic, perovskite, or quantum-confined materials).
- Nanostructured Photocatalysts
- Atomic-level engineering of photocatalysts and design of plasmonic, quantum dot, or MOF-based photocatalysts for CO2 reduction or H2 generation.
- Solar-driven plastic waste reforming into H2/hydrocarbons via nanoscale catalysts.
- Mechanistic studies of charge transfer at nanoscale interfaces.
- Stability and scalability of photocatalytic nanomaterials.
- Photoelectrochemical (PEC) Nanodevices
- Nano-engineered photoelectrodes for water splitting.
- Integrated nanosystems for CO2-to-fuel conversion (e.g., gas-diffusion electrodes with plasmonic enhancers).
- Tandem PEC systems integrating light absorbers and catalytic nanostructures.
- Solar Thermochemical Nanomaterials
- High-entropy nanostructured materials for sunlight-driven syngas production.
- Nanoscale redox materials for two-step CO2/H2O splitting cycles.
- Hybrid and Bio-Inspired Nanosystems
- Artificial leaf architectures combining light absorbers and molecular catalysts for solar fuel synthesis.
- Plasmonic nanoparticles for localized heat/photocatalysis synergy.
- Characterization and Modeling
- Operando studies of nanomaterial behavior under solar irradiation.
- DFT/machine-learning-guided design of photocatalytic nanomaterials.
- Techno-economic analysis of nanomaterial-based solar fuel plants.
- Applications and Scalability
- Prototype and pilot-scale demonstrations of solar fuel nanosystems.
- Scientific and technological evaluation, including life-cycle and techno-economic analysis of nanomaterial-based fuel production.
Prof. Dr. Kwang Leong Choy
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- solar-driven fuel
- nanostructured materials
- photocatalysts
- CO2 reduction
- water splitting
- plasmonic nanomaterials
- photoelectrochemical (PEC) devices
- solar thermochemistry
- machine-learning-guided design
- techno-economic analysis
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