A facile one-pot synthesis of advanced Te@hydrothermal carbon nanocables with broad-spectrum solar absorption and high light-to-heat conversion performance

Abstract

This study presents a one-pot hydrothermal synthesis of one-dimensional core–shell nanocables (NCs) using glucose as a green reducing agent for Te nanowire formation and as a precursor for the hydrothermal carbon shell (HC). The resulting NCs feature nanometer-scale diameters and lengths extending to tens of micrometers, forming a well-defined core–shell structure. Comprehensive analysis using advanced characterization techniques reveals the synergistic interaction between the Te core and the HC shell, enabling broad-spectrum light absorption, including significant near-infrared absorption. When these NCs were incorporated into melamine foam (MF), the resulting NCs/MF sponges achieved a remarkable surface temperature of 77.8 °C under 1 sun irradiation, exhibiting significant photothermal conversion efficiency. Additionally, the NCs/MF sponges exhibited a water evaporation flux of 1.51 kg m⁻² h⁻¹ and a conversion efficiency of 97.5%. These findings underscore the potential of the advanced NCs synthesized by this straightforward method for effective solar energy harvesting in clean energy applications.