Solar Energy Utilization and Sustainable Development

Dear Colleagues,

It is our pleasure to announce a new Special Issue of the journal Sustainability: “Solar Energy Utilization and Sustainable Development”.

Energy demand is a problem of modern society, provoking a strong social, economic and environmental impact. The implementation of renewable energy is of crucial importance to achieve sustainable development. Energy sustainability establishes a compromise between meeting current needs without compromising future energy generations. The implementation of renewable energy requires the active participation of governments and social awareness of sustainability. Of all the energies considered clean, solar energy is the most mature technology and the most widely used on our planet due to its low production and installation costs. Solar technologies include solar thermal (concentrated and unconcentrated) and photovoltaics (PV). Solar energy provides access to cheap energy and makes energy affordable and reliable with deployment from small scale in homes and small industrial facilities to large scale for industry and distribution networks. In addition, it provides long-term and durable energy security through appropriate investments, boosting economic activity, creating jobs and providing a cleaner and better environment for all. Solar and other renewable energies reduce the impact on climate change, reducing the carbon footprint and greenhouse gas emissions. The modernization of energy services towards sustainable generation is crucial to achieve a goal of economic growth and environmental stability.

Although the energy transition has seen changes in energy use and applications, progress is still needed on how to apply solar energy more and better to manage the environmental and societal challenges ahead. The greatest challenges to be solved are efficiency, solar equipment recycling, and the storage of surplus energy produced.

From the point of view of recycling, the environmental impact of solar equipment is a widely studied topic. The data used in the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) methodology cover all relevant process steps/technologies during the life cycle, starting with raw materials (cradle) and ending with waste (grave). From an LCA perspective, recycled materials are considered at the end of their life cycle, which also includes waste disposal. So, using LCA, the circular economy is supported.

The aim of this Special Issue is to present and compile the latest developments in the utilization of solar energy systems in the progress towards sustainable deployment. This topic involves the technological innovations, applications and developments, as well as energy policies and new factors for the management of solar power systems.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Opportunities, barriers and problems in the development of solar energy;
• Analysis of the energy and environmental life cycle of solar energy;
• Solar energy assessment for global sustainability;
• Studies of sustainable energy transitions;
• Innovative strategies for the use of solar energy;
• Improving the efficiency of solar plants, solar facilities and solar equipment;
• Advances in solar energy generation systems;
• Advances in emerging solar energy production technologies;
• Integration of solar-based subsystems into existing power plants;
• Solar energy and microgrids;
• Integration of solar energy systems in buildings and Smart Cities’
• Application and purposes of solar energy;
• e-Agriculture and solar applications;
• Solar home systems;
• Sensor networks and embedded systems in sustainable solar energy applications;
• Research tools for solar application;
• Environmental sustainability of solar energy systems;
• Optimisation and improvement of sustainable solar energy systems;
• Energy transition towards full decarbonisation;
• Impact of solar energy on smart grids;
• Health benefits of using solar energy for sustainable development;
• Solar energy deployment and land use;
• The role of solar energy in ensuring security of energy supply;
• Advances in solar equipment recycling;
• Solar energy and sustainability in developing countries;
• Storage techniques for the surplus energy produced.

A non-exhaustive and non-limitative list has been established. Therefore, all papers related to the topics mentioned above that accomplish the purposes of the Special Issue will be accepted. The goal is the study of present advances in solar energy utilization and sustainable development.

Dr. Nuria Novas Castellano
Prof. Dr. Manuel Fernandez Ros
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. 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 collection website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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-anonymized 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.