Recent advances in carbon assisted pyroelectric composites for energy conversion

Abstract

The excessive usage of fossil fuels is prompting researchers to develop novel functional materials to meet future energy demand. However, there is a lot of decentralized energy from air, water vapor, heat-conducting media, and even day/night alternations, which is lost in the form of waste heat. Inspired by the excellent thermal stability and thermal conductivity of carbon materials, researchers have reported a series of carbon assisted pyroelectric composites for energy conversion. In this review article, the fundamentals of the pyroelectric effect and pyro-phototronic effect are first introduced, followed by a summary of the synthesis strategies for carbon assisted pyroelectric composites, such as coating, deposition, electrospinning, solid-state reactions, etc. In addition, the relevant research advances on carbon assisted pyroelectric composites in energy conversion are reviewed, including sensing, energy harvesting, and pyroelectric catalysis. Finally, the existing challenges and future aspects of carbon assisted pyroelectric composites for energy conversion applications are prospected. This review would support researchers in a wide range of disciplines to procure systematic information for the synthesis methods, and energy conversion applications of carbon assisted pyroelectric composites.