Themed collection Nanoscale Horizons and Nanoscale: Nanomaterials for Energy

We summarized the recent progress of aggregation-induced emission (AIE) materials in luminescent solar concentrators, photosynthesis augmentation and solar steam generation. The luminescence and heat generation of AIE materials in different states have been utilized.

A critical review of built-in electric fields for the applications in electrocatalytic reactions is organized by focusing on the fundamental concepts, modification strategies, and positive influences on the promotion of catalytic performance.

This minireview highlights the recent progress in the construction of self-supported MOF-based nanostructures including pristine MOFs, MOF composites and MOF derivative arrays, and their application in SCs.

Light-driven multi-charge accumulation (i.e., photodoping) of doped metal oxide nanocrystals opens the way to innovative solutions for the direct conversion and storage of the solar energy.

This review enhances a fundamental understanding of the degradation mechanisms of Ni-based layered cathodes under fast-charging conditions from atomic to electrode scales. Design strategies for enhancing fast-charging performance are also suggested.

This review focus on the rational design of the highly reversible zinc anode for high-performance aqueous zinc-ion batteries. The design concepts are expected to be applied to other types of high-performance aqueous energy storage systems.

In this review, we present the state-of-art progress in halide perovskite-based PENG and TENG devices, focusing on their different performance optimization strategies and prospective applications in the future.

Recent challenges of layer-structured cathodes for sodium-ion batteries and their corresponding structural and compositional modification strategies have been comprehensively studied in this review aiming at high-performance battery technology.

The design strategy and synthesis approach impact the physico-chemical properties, catalytic performances and reaction pathways of ODS catalysts.

Microwave-assisted synthesis of carbon nanomaterials, metal oxides/hydroxides and their composites for energy storage applications.

Emerging 2D-MoS₂ based 2D/2D heterostructures toward high-efficiency energy conversion applications. A powerful combination of 2D-MoS₂ with other 2D materials furnishes an excellent heterointerface for superior photo/electrocatalytic performances.

MoS₂ in a graphene-like structure that possesses a large interlayer spacing is a promising anode material for sodium ions batteries (SIBs).

Nano-sized Ti₂InC prepared by ball milling combines the benefits of insertion-type and alloy-type electrodes and thus has a favorable capacity and long cycling life, suggesting that downsized MAX phases would be a promising anode.

A cationic bakelite–viologen polymer with counter-balancing hydroxide ions serves as a solid-state electrolyte for zinc–air battery.

Electrolyte engineering by adding salts to propylene carbonate (PC) leads to enhanced voltage-controlled ON–OFF ferromagnetism via oxygen ion motion in electrolyte-gated Co₃O₄ films. 35-fold faster magneto-ionic rate is achieved in KI-containing PC.

Twin Swiss-roll microelectrodes are built up on a chip delivering a high energy density of 458 μW h cm⁻², which redefines the performance limit in the sub-0.1 square millimeter range.

The magnetic field is used to separate charges which enables us to fabricate a magnetic energy harvesting device.

In situ anodic oxidation strategy is demonstrated to fabricate flexible long-life and high-capacity aqueous zinc-ion batteries adopting a 3D N-doped/defect-rich V₂O_5−x·nH₂O nanosheets as fibrous cathodes and Zn nanosheets arrays as the anode.

A high-performance Na anode is designed by introducing an artificial VN interlayer (high sodiophilicity) on the Na metal surface (Na/VN) by a simple mechanical rolling process to regulate Na nucleation/deposition behaviors.

A conductive framework embedded with cobalt-doped vanadium nitride for enhanced chemisorption and catalytic effects of polysulfides.

Flexible electronics are gaining rapid popularity in modern day life. We demonstrate a simplified process to make flexible LEDs using p-InP nanowires with conformal coating of ZnO and perform a systematic study.

This paper presents a deep learning-based approach to automate particle size analysis in the microscopy images of catalyst layers for polymer electrolyte fuel cells.

The oxygenated copper vanadium selenide composite electrode material as a cathode for aqueous zinc-ion batteries exhibits high capacity with ultra-long cycling life.

The development of photo-enhanced lithium-ion batteries, where exposing the electrodes to light results in higher capacities, higher rate performance or self-charging, has recently gained substantial traction. We propose copper-hexahydroxybenzene as the active photo-electrode material which both harvests light and stores energy.

Utilization of waste heat from laptop/electronic gadgets to generate electricity by using 2D CoTe₂ working as a piezo-tribo nanogenerator (PTNG).

The efficiency of traditional solar cells is constrained due to the Shockley–Queisser limit, to circumvent this theoretical limit, the concept of solar thermophotovoltaics (STPVs) has been introduced.

The nature and positions of defects, i.e., whether they are at the surface or in the lattice, in ZnO and carbonaceous electrodes were identified via EPR spectroscopy. It was shown that defects play a crucial role in supercapacitor device performance.

The degradation of AgBiS₂ nanocrystal solar cells upon exposure to oxygen is strongly impacted by the choice of extraction layers and proceeds via a decomposition of AgBiS₂ into Ag₂S and Bi₂O₃.

PDMS is used as matrix to produce a flexible supercapacitor based on aligned carbon nanotubes and polyaniline, which presents outstanding energy-to-power density ratio and remarkable cycling stability even at different bending angles.

To enhance the output performance of line patterned (LP) TENG, a thin layer of PEO and PVA was coated. Among these, the output performance of PEO coated LP TENG was enhanced and found to be 2-fold higher than that of the PVA coated device.

Benefiting from the advantages of low cost, light weight and mechanical flexibility, piezoelectric nanogenerators have the potential for application in renewable energy harvesting from various unexplored sources.

The commercial application of Lithium–sulfur batteries (LSBs) is impeded by the shuttle effect. We report zinc (Zn) and nitrogen (N) co-doped ZIF-8 derived hollow carbon (ZHC) as a promising separator coating for LSBs to control the shuttle effect.

An electrode composed of defective NiO nanostructures supported on carbon nanofibers and immersed in an Li⁺-based aqueous electrolyte is studied using Raman spectroscopy under dynamic polarization conditions to address the charge-storage phenomenon.

Sulfur defective V₅S₈/CNFs is synthesized by an electrospinning method, followed by sulfuration treatment. The obtained composite exhibits attractive capacities and ultra-stable cycling performances when using as anode materials for sodium-ion and potassium-ion batteries.

SnTe exhibits a layered crystal structure, which enables fast Li-ion diffusion and easy storage, and is considered to be a promising candidate for an advanced anode material.

Low-cost and quasi-solid-state polyelectrolyte hydrogel accommodating a superhigh concentration of CH₃COOK has been prepared for supercapacitors with high ionic conductivity and electrochemical window.

An effective approach is developed to construct multi-shelled nickel–manganese selenide hollow sphere and double-shell nickel–iron selenide hollow sphere electrode materials for supercapacitors.

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs), due to their sluggish Zn²⁺ diffusion kinetics, continue to face challenges in terms of achieving superior high rate, long-term cycling and low-temperature properties.

We reported a facile method to transform surface energy of plain cotton and silk into different tribopolarities. A single natural textile based TENG generated the maximum output voltage of 216.8 V and output current of 50.3 uA.

Transition metal oxides used as electrode materials for flexible supercapacitors have attracted huge attention due to their high specific capacitance and surface-to-volume ratio, specifically for cobalt oxide (Co₃O₄) nanoparticles.