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Manjunatha C, Rastogi CK, Manmadha Rao B, Girish Kumar S, Varun S, Raitani K, Maurya G, Karthik B, Swathi C, Sadrzadeh M, Khosla A. Advances in Hierarchical Inorganic Nanostructures for Efficient Solar Energy Harvesting Systems. ChemSusChem 2024:e202301755. [PMID: 38478710 DOI: 10.1002/cssc.202301755] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2023] [Revised: 03/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/17/2024]
Abstract
The urgent need to address the global energy and environmental crisis necessitates the development of efficient solar-power harvesting systems. Among the promising candidates, hierarchical inorganic nanostructures stand out due to their exceptional attributes, including a high specific surface area, abundant active sites, and tunable optoelectronic properties. In this comprehensive review, we delve into the fundamental principles underlying various solar energy harvesting technologies, including dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), photocatalytic, photoelectrocatalytic (water splitting), and photothermal (water purification) systems, providing a foundational understanding of their operation. Thereafter, the discussion is focused on recent advancements in the synthesis, design, and development of hierarchical nanostructures composed of diverse inorganic material combinations, tailored for each of these solar energy harvesting systems. We meticulously elaborate on the distinct synthesis methods and conditions employed to fine-tune the morphological features of these hierarchical nanostructures. Furthermore, this review offers profound insights into critical aspects such as electron transfer mechanisms, band gap engineering, the creation of hetero-hybrid structures to optimize interface chemistry through diverse synthesis approaches, and precise adjustments of structural features. Beyond elucidating the scientific fundamentals, this review explores the large-scale applications of the aforementioned solar harvesting systems. Additionally, it addresses the existing challenges and outlines the prospects for achieving heightened solar-energy conversion efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Manjunatha
- Centre for Nanomaterials and Devices, Department of Chemistry, RV College of Engineering, Bengaluru, India
| | | | - B Manmadha Rao
- Department of Physics, VIT-AP University, Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh, India
| | - S Girish Kumar
- Centre for Nanomaterials and Devices, Department of Chemistry, RV College of Engineering, Bengaluru, India
| | - S Varun
- Department of Chemical Engineering, RV College of Engineering, Bengaluru, India
| | - Karthik Raitani
- Centre for Advanced Studies, Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam Technical University, Lucknow, India
| | - Gyanprakash Maurya
- Centre for Advanced Studies, Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam Technical University, Lucknow, India
| | - B Karthik
- Department of Chemical Engineering, RV College of Engineering, Bengaluru, India
| | - C Swathi
- Department of Chemical Engineering, RV College of Engineering, Bengaluru, India
| | - Mohtada Sadrzadeh
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Advanced Water Research Lab (AWRL), University of Alberta, Canada
| | - Ajit Khosla
- School of Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Province, China
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