Emerging Materials and Structures for Future Renewable Energy Conversion and Large-scale Storage Technology

The future of mankind relies on our ability to produce, store, and utilize fuels for energy production. The rapid development of society and economy all over the world leads to greater energy demand than ever before, especially for renewable energy. To achieve global climate protection goals, many newfangled and effective means i.e., wind energy, hydroelectric generation, solar energy, geothermal energy, etc. have been applied to supply more and more clean energy. In this process, how to realize the efficient conversion and storage of energy becomes the key point. To design such devices, it is essential to study and understand the basic principles and mechanisms of renewable energy conversion and storage technologies. Each of these technologies has its own characteristics, requirements, and efficiency limitations or constraints, as well as different requirements for materials and structures. The design of new energy-related materials is at the forefront of different sciences such as materials science, chemistry, physics, and engineering, which also generates requirements for further exploration of emerging materials and structures. At the same time, innovations in materials and structures are the basis for new technological breakthroughs. Therefore, exploring new materials and their structures that can be used for energy conversion and storage is a very promising path.

This Research Topic is aimed for researchers to gain an in-depth understanding of novel materials and structures for energy harvesting, conversion, and storage. Not only experimental studies but also theoretical research papers are welcomed in this collection. Through an integration of articles, reviews, and communications on key points, we hope to provide a comprehensive coverage of the current exciting and dynamic field which involves novel materials and structures for energy conversion and storage.

We sincerely welcome high-quality original research and review papers sharing the most recent ideas in the field of energy conversion and storage. Possible research themes include, but are not limited to:

• Novel materials and structures for photovoltaic technology
• Advanced nanomaterials for photocatalysts
• Advanced materials and structures for electrolytic hydrogen
• Advanced materials and structures for batteries and supercapacitors
• Theoretical design for energy conversion and storage
• Solar desalination and water purification
• Other related aspects