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Energies
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Advanced Materials and Methods for Energy Conversion, Harvesting, and Storage
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Advanced Materials and Methods for Energy Conversion, Harvesting, and Storage

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "D: Energy Storage and Application".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 October 2024 | Viewed by 2519

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Riaz Ahmed

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Wisconsin—Green Bay, Green Bay, WI 54311, USA
Interests: energy harvesting; renewable energy; mechanical sensors; acoustic metamaterials and phononic crystals; wave modulation and guiding; artificial cochlea
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Hossain Ahmed

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA 30458, USA
Interests: computational NDE; energy harvesting; SHM; metamaterials; energy guiding and manipulation; mechatronics/robotics; Li-Ion batteries
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Renewable energy technologies have gained tremendous interest in the last decade due to their ability to provide clean and sustainable energy. Renewable energy technologies extend from low-scale energy outputs (e.g., piezoelectric, pyroelectric) to large-scale energy production (e.g., solar, wind, hydrogen). Scientific communities and multidisciplinary industries are coming forward to enhance these domains from various sources, and to improve the overall systems for prototyping and commercialization. This allows us to use abundant natural resources which are lost otherwise, reduce the dependency on precious fossil fuels, produce energy in remote areas, and increase the use of alternative energies. Low-scale energy production is typically termed as ‘energy harvesting’, and is typically used to power low-power electronic devices (e.g., sensors, electronic devices). Whereas wind and solar energy are the two main sources of large-scale energy production, hydrogen has recently become one of the leading options for storing renewable energy for power generation. A continuous effort is always carried out by researchers to explore novel materials and methods to improve the power output and efficiency of these technologies. Hence, this Special Issue aims to receive original research and review articles on the state-of-the-art research activities as well as advanced/novel materials and ideas on renewable energy with an emphasis on energy conversion, harvesting, and storage.

Dr. Riaz Ahmed
Dr. Hossain Ahmed
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • renewable energy technologies
  • energy conversion systems
  • energy harvesting technologies
  • energy storage approaches
  • clean energy production and storage
  • advanced materials in renewable energy
  • novel methodologies for energy conversion and storage
  • energy scavenging system optimization

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 3585 KiB  
Article
Effect of Size and Morphology of Different ZnO Nanostructures on the Performance of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells
by Sunandan Baruah, Rakesh A. Afre and Diego Pugliese
Energies 2024, 17(9), 2076; https://doi.org/10.3390/en17092076 - 26 Apr 2024
Viewed by 370
Abstract
In this study, the influence of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures with various morphologies on the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) was investigated. Photo-electrodes were fabricated incorporating ZnO transport layers of distinct nanoscale morphologies—namely nanoparticles, microballs, spiky microballs, belts, and triangles—and their respective [...] Read more.
In this study, the influence of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures with various morphologies on the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) was investigated. Photo-electrodes were fabricated incorporating ZnO transport layers of distinct nanoscale morphologies—namely nanoparticles, microballs, spiky microballs, belts, and triangles—and their respective current–voltage characteristics were evaluated. It was observed that the DSSCs employing the triangular ZnO nanostructures, with a side length of approximately 30 nm, achieved the highest power conversion efficiency of 2.62%. This was closely followed by the DSSCs using spherical nanoparticles with an average diameter of approximately 20 nm, yielding an efficiency of 2.54%. In contrast, the efficiencies of DSSCs with microball and spiky microball ZnO nanostructures were significantly lower, measuring 0.31 and 1.79%, respectively. The reduction in efficiency for the microball-based DSSCs is attributed to the formation of micro-cracks within the thin film during the fabrication process. All DSSC configurations maintained a uniform active area of 4 mm². Remarkably, the highest fill factor of 59.88% was recorded for DSSCs utilizing the triangular ZnO morphology, with the spherical nanoparticles attaining a marginally lower fill factor of 59.38%. This investigation corroborates the hypothesis that reduced particle size in the transport layer correlates with enhanced DSSC performance, which is further amplified when the nanoparticles possess pointed geometries that induce strong electric fields due to elevated charge concentrations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Materials and Methods for Energy Conversion, Harvesting, and Storage)
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21 pages, 3888 KiB  
Article
Distributed Energy Systems: Multi-Objective Design Optimization Based on Life Cycle Environmental and Economic Impacts
by Krisha Maharjan, Jian Zhang, Heejin Cho and Yang Chen
Energies 2023, 16(21), 7312; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16217312 - 28 Oct 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 754
Abstract
The distributed energy system (DES) represents an innovative approach to energy generation and distribution that promotes decentralization and diversification of energy sources. DESs can offer numerous benefits, including increased resiliency, reduced transmission losses, improved efficiency, and lower carbon emissions. The optimal design of [...] Read more.
The distributed energy system (DES) represents an innovative approach to energy generation and distribution that promotes decentralization and diversification of energy sources. DESs can offer numerous benefits, including increased resiliency, reduced transmission losses, improved efficiency, and lower carbon emissions. The optimal design of a DES requires careful consideration of various factors such as geographical location, climate conditions, and energy demand patterns. This paper utilizes a multi-objective genetic algorithm to optimize the combination of technologies and their corresponding sizes in a distributed energy system for three types of commercial buildings—hospitals, large offices, and large hotels across eight different climate zones in the U.S. A range of technologies are considered for integration into the DES. These technologies include photovoltaic systems, wind turbines, combined heat and power systems, solar thermal collectors, and electrical and thermal energy storage. The two objectives considered are maximizing the reduction in carbon dioxide emissions and minimizing the life cycle costs for the DES. The purpose of this study is to optimize and evaluate the multi-objective design of distributed energy systems aimed at decentralizing and diversifying energy sources. The analysis of optimized DES designs across all 24 case scenarios shows that a balance between cost saving and emission reduction has been achieved. Although this study primarily focuses on specific buildings and climate zones, the methods and findings can be adapted for a wider variety of building types across different geographical locations, thus paving the way for more widespread adoption of optimized distributed energy systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Materials and Methods for Energy Conversion, Harvesting, and Storage)
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13 pages, 4091 KiB  
Article
A Mass-In-Mass Metamaterial Design for Harvesting Energy at a Broadband Frequency Range
by Hossain Ahmed and Riaz Ahmed
Energies 2023, 16(16), 5883; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16165883 - 09 Aug 2023
Viewed by 791
Abstract
A novel deterministic method to harvest energy within a broadband frequency (0~25 kHz) from a mass-in-mass metamaterial is presented herein. Traditional metamaterials are composed of multiple materials (named as resonators and matrix) with different mechanical properties (e.g., stiffness, density). In this work, the [...] Read more.
A novel deterministic method to harvest energy within a broadband frequency (0~25 kHz) from a mass-in-mass metamaterial is presented herein. Traditional metamaterials are composed of multiple materials (named as resonators and matrix) with different mechanical properties (e.g., stiffness, density). In this work, the stiffnesses of matrix materials are altered systematically to allow diversified property mismatches between the constituent components to introduce local resonance in the unit cell. While local resonance leverages wave energy passing through the acoustic metamaterials trapped within the relatively soft matrix as dynamic strain energy, a strategic and deterministic methodology is investigated to obtain a broadband local resonance frequency. The frequency band can then be utilized to harvest the trapped energy by embedding a smart material inside the matrix which is capable of electromechanical transduction (e.g., lead zirconate titanate). This concept has been proved numerically by harvesting energy at a broadband frequency with a power density of ~10 μW/in2. Finally, an experimental study is performed to prove the hypothesis proposed in this article. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Materials and Methods for Energy Conversion, Harvesting, and Storage)
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