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Sustainable Development of Energy Conversion and Storage Devices

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2023) | Viewed by 10244

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Muhammad Sufyan Javed

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Guest Editor

School of Physical Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
Interests: energy conversion and storage technologies; fuel cells; supercapacitors; batteries; catalysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Patrizia Bocchetta

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Guest Editor

Department of Engineering for Innovation, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Interests: electrochemistry; nanomaterials; energy conversion; conducting polymers; corrosion
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Yogesh Kumar

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Guest Editor

Department of Physics, A R S D College, University of Delhi, 110 021 New Delhi, India
Interests: electrochemistry; energy conversion; supercapacitors

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue titled “Sustainable Development of Energy Conversion and Storage Devices” aims to address advances and perspectives in scientific research on sustainable materials, processes and systems for possible application in energy storage and conversion devices that will be part of the upcoming energy transition.

The contributions are expected to cover, but will not be limited to, the material science aspects of the components of the devices (fuels, catalysts, inert materials, etc.) and the processes in which they are involved (from the synthesis to the energy production and environmental impact). Fuel cell systems contribute to sustainability and environmental issues thanks to the physical chemistry of the hydrogen electrochemical oxidation which increases energy conversion efficiency and reduces pollutant emissions to zero. Of course, hydrogen needs to be produced by a sustainable process (e.g., by water electrolysis using solar energy). Microbial fuel cells are another example of a sustainable device because they are fed by organic and residual materials for their operation. In both cases, novel materials need to be developed to substitute the actual electrodes and membranes, which are still based on non-green raw materials and resources. Research interest in supercapacitors is increasing due to their unusually high energy density and mechanical flexibility for wearable applications, and thus papers studying novel materials able to store energy as well as the unsustainable and expensive activated carbon are welcome. The sustainability of all types of batteries throughout their life cycle is also crucial for the goals of the European Green Deal to obtain climate neutrality by 2050. Toward this aim, the recycling of batteries is fundamental; high levels of recovery have to be achieved, in particular of precious metals (Co, Li, Ni, Pb, etc.).

Green and sustainable characteristics involved in energy conversion/charge storage devices, processes, and systems are crucial in order to be ready for the energy transition era and the climate challenge.

This Special Issue aims to collect eminent contributions from scholars with diverse backgrounds to discuss all aspects of this topic. Both original research and comprehensive review papers are solicited with theoretical or experimental approaches to the topic.

Dr. Muhammad Sufyan Javed
Prof. Dr. Patrizia Bocchetta
Dr. Yogesh Kumar
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

sustainable materials
energy conversion
fuel cells
supercapacitors
batteries
hydrogen
energy storage

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 3273 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Thermoelectric Generator Using Low-Cost Thermoelectric Modules for Low-Temperature Waste Heat Recovery

by Manuela Castañeda, Andrés A. Amell, Mauricio A. Correa, Claudio E. Aguilar and Henry A. Colorado

Sustainability 2023, 15(4), 3681; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15043681 - 16 Feb 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2134

Abstract

One of the most significant problems in industrial processes is the loss of energy according to the sort of heat. Thermoelectrics are a promising alternative to recovering this type of thermal energy, as they can convert heat into electricity, improving the industrial efficiency of the process. This article presents the characteristics of low-cost thermoelectric modules typically used for generation (SP1848-27145SA (TEG-GEN)) and refrigeration (TEC1-12706 (TEC-REF)), both utilized in this research for heat recovery. The modules were evaluated against various configurations, source distances, and distributed systems in order to determine optimal recovery conditions. The experiments were conducted both at the laboratory level and in a large-scale furnace of the traditional ceramics industry, and they revealed that even refrigeration modules are suitable for energy recovery, particularly in developing countries, whereas other generators are more expensive and difficult to obtain. These thermoelectric generators were tested for low-temperature heat recovery in regular furnaces, and the results are to be implemented elsewhere. Results show that even the thermoelectric refrigeration modules can be a solution for heat recovery in many heat sources, which would be particularly strategic for developing countries. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Development of Energy Conversion and Storage Devices)

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17 pages, 3942 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Design and Control of Novel Single-Phase Multilevel Voltage Inverter Using MPC Controller

by Muhammad Ahsan Ayub, Saddam Aziz, Yitao Liu, Jianchun Peng and Jian Yin

Sustainability 2023, 15(1), 860; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15010860 - 03 Jan 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2167

Abstract

In this article, a single-phase five-level voltage inverter topology with six switches is suggested for renewable energy applications. Control inverters that are low-cost, highly efficient, and resilient are required for modern renewable energy grids. The basic goal is to collect as much power as possible from the sources and feed the current into the grid with as little loss and harmonic distortion as possible. The suggested inverter’s low switch count (six switches) with only two switches switched ON in a single state greatly decreases switching and conduction losses. Furthermore, a multi-error feedback controller with modified sinusoidal pulse width modulation (SPWM) is presented to manage the switching operation and maintain the output voltage in the appropriate range under different input and output voltage conditions. Furthermore, the lack of a clamping diode and bulky capacitors in the topology allows it to be controlled using a simple model predictive controller, lowering the cost of the circuit and improving the overall efficiency of the five-level inverter. Furthermore, for the variable input waveform, the total harmonic distortion (THD) evaluated by FFT analysis is within the allowed range of 1.8–4.5%. To validate the originality of this study, simulation and hardware results are provided and compared with current topologies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Development of Energy Conversion and Storage Devices)

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18 pages, 4520 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Cryogenic-Energy-Storage-Based Optimized Green Growth of an Integrated and Sustainable Energy System

by Muhammad Shahzad Nazir, Ahmed N. Abdalla, Ahmed Sayed M. Metwally, Muhammad Imran, Patrizia Bocchetta and Muhammad Sufyan Javed

Sustainability 2022, 14(9), 5301; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095301 - 28 Apr 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1798

Abstract

The advancement of using the cryogenic energy storage (CES) system has enabled efficient utilization of abandoned wind and solar energy, and the system can be dispatched in the peak hours of regional power load demand to release energy. It can fill the demand gap, which is conducive to the peak regulation of the power system and can further promote the rapid development of new energy. This study optimizes the various types of energy complementary to the CES system using hybrid gravitational search algorithm-local search optimization (hGSA-LS). First, the mathematical model of the energy storage system (ESS) including the CES system is briefly described. Second, an economic scheduling optimization model of the IES is constructed by minimizing the operating cost of the system. Third, the hGSA-LS methods to solve the optimization problem are proposed. Simulations show that the hGSA-LS methodology is more efficient. The simulation results verify the feasibility of CES compared with traditional systems in terms of economic benefits, new energy consumption rate, primary energy saving rate, and carbon emissions under different fluctuations in energy prices. Optimization of the system operation using the proposed hGSA-LS algorithm takes 5.87 s; however, the GA, PSO, and GSA require 12.56, 10.33, and 7.95 s, respectively. Thus, the hGSA-LS algorithm shows a comparatively better performance than GA, PSO, and GSA in terms of time. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Development of Energy Conversion and Storage Devices)

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10 pages, 2994 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Sustainable Approach to the Preparation of MoO₂ Quantum Dots and the Pseudocapacitive Performance before and after Calcination

by Yi An, Weizhi Gong, Junli Wang, Jianlin Liu, Liexing Zhou, Yi Xia, Cheng Pan, Mingjun Wang and Dong Fang

Sustainability 2022, 14(9), 4880; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14094880 - 19 Apr 2022

Viewed by 1373

Abstract

The present preparation methods of molybdenum dioxide (MoO₂) quantum dots (QDs) are often cumbersome and not environmentally friendly, and more importantly, the prepared MoO₂ QDs are usually wrapped in surfactants, which are difficult to be removed and impact their intrinsic characterization and performance. Herein, we present a facile, scalable and sustainable approach to obtain clean and pure MoO₂ QDs (1.5~3 nm), which consists of a hydrothermal reaction and a further calcination process in vacuum following freeze drying. Furthermore, the influence of calcination temperature, atmosphere and time is also studied. The calcination at 400 °C for 2 h in vacuum can efficiently remove the surfactants wrapping on the MoO₂ QDs without obvious size change, whereas the calcination in nitrogen will lead to a slight increase in size, and the calcination in air could transform MoO₂ QDs into MoO₃ nanoplates. In addition, the pseudocapacitive performance of the as-prepared samples is tested and compared by electrochemical methods, and the specific capacitance of the clean MoO₂ QDs is about 1.4 times larger than that of MoO₂ QDs with surfactants at 5 mV s⁻¹. This study also demonstrates a possible way to efficiently remove the organic substance wrapping on quantum dot materials. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Development of Energy Conversion and Storage Devices)

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12 pages, 1590 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Simplified Route for Deposition of Binary and Ternary Bismuth Sulphide Thin Films for Solar Cell Applications

by Tanzeela Fazal, Bushra Ismail, Mazloom Shah, Shahid Iqbal, Eslam B. Elkaeed, Nasser S. Awwad and Hala A. Ibrahium

Sustainability 2022, 14(8), 4603; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14084603 - 12 Apr 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1521

Abstract

For photovoltaic applications, undoped and Ni²⁺ doped Bi₂S₃ thin films were chemically deposited onto glass substrates at room temperature. Elemental diffraction analysis confirmed the successful Ni²⁺ incorporation in the range of 1.0 to 2.0 at. %, while X-ray Diffraction analysis revealed that orthorhombic crystal lattice of Bi₂S₃ was conserved while transferring from binary to ternary phase. Scanning electron microscopy images reported homogeneous and crack-free morphology of the obtained films. Optoelectronic analysis revealed that the bandgap value was shifted from 1.7 to 1.1 eV. Ni²⁺ incorporation also improved the carrier concentration, leading to higher electrical conductivity. Resultant optoelectronic behavior of ternary Bi_2−x Ni_xS₃ thin films suggests that doping is proved to be an effectual tool to optimize the photovoltaic response of Bi₂S₃ for solar cell applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Development of Energy Conversion and Storage Devices)

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