Advanced Materials: Sustainable Energy Harvesting, Environmental Cleanup and Functional Application
A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Nanoscience and Nanotechnology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 21 November 2025 | Viewed by 16
Special Issue Editors
Interests: electrocatalysis; hydrogen energy; CO2RR; energy harvesting
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: semiconductor interface polarization engineering and intelligent sensing system; piezoelectric (optical) electronics in third-generation semiconductors; nanogenerator and self-drive sensing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: extracting silicon from silicon-containing solid waste; value-added utilization of metallurgical silicon; porous materials were prepared by phase separation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The global demand for sustainable energy solutions and environmental remediation has driven unprecedented advancements in materials science over the past decade. Advanced materials—engineered with tailored functionalities—have emerged as pivotal tools in addressing societal challenges, from reducing greenhouse gas emissions to enabling energy autonomy. Historically, innovations like Piezo/triboelectric nanogenerators (P/TENGs) for harvesting ocean energy, catalytic systems for water splitting, and materials for CO2 capture and utilization have redefined the boundaries of material science.
This Special Issue aims to consolidate cutting-edge research at the intersection of advanced materials design, energy harvesting, and environmental remediation. We focus on the following:
- Sustainable Energy Harvesting: Innovations in materials for solar, thermal, kinetic, and moisture-driven energy conversion (e.g., hydrogen energy, PENGs, TENGs, and perovskite photovoltaics).
- Environmental Cleanup: Advanced adsorbents, catalysts, and biohybrid systems for pollutant removal, carbon capture, and ecosystem restoration (e.g., CO2 reduction reaction, heavy metal removal, and organic matter degradation).
- Functional Applications: Integration of materials into real-world systems, including wearable electronics, smart grids, and industrial-scale remediation.
We invite contributions across the following themes:
- Novel Material Synthesis: Design of low-cost, high-performance materials (e.g., doped oxides, 2D composites, bio-inspired architectures).
- Mechanistic Insights: Fundamental studies on energy conversion pathways (e.g., lattice oxygen vs. adsorbate evolution mechanisms) or pollutant degradation kinetics.
- Application Case Studies: Field trials of materials in energy grids, electronic skins, or large-scale remediation projects.
- Multi-scale Analysis: From quantum-scale simulations to Earth system modelling.
- Techno-economic Assessments: Life-cycle analysis (LCA), energy return on investment (EROI), and scalability evaluations.
Both original research and comprehensive reviews are welcome. Submissions should emphasize innovation, sustainability, and practical relevance, aligning with global priorities such as decarbonization and circular economy.
Prof. Dr. Tao Yang
Prof. Dr. Laipan Zhu
Prof. Dr. Biao Gao
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- hydrogen energy
- energy harvesting
- environmental cleanup
- battery
- functional material
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