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Nanomaterials
Special Issues
Advanced Materials: Sustainable Energy Harvesting, Environmental Cleanup and Functional Application
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Advanced Materials: Sustainable Energy Harvesting, Environmental Cleanup and Functional Application

A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Nanoscience and Nanotechnology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 21 November 2025 | Viewed by 2263

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Tao Yang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Collaborative Innovation Center of Steel Technology, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
Interests: electrocatalysis; hydrogen energy; CO2RR; energy harvesting
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Laipan Zhu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 101400, China
Interests: semiconductor interface polarization engineering and intelligent sensing system; piezoelectric (optical) electronics in third-generation semiconductors; nanogenerator and self-drive sensing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Biao Gao

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
The State Key Laboratory of Refractories and Metallurgy and Institute of Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430081, China
Interests: extracting silicon from silicon-containing solid waste; value-added utilization of metallurgical silicon; porous materials were prepared by phase separation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The global demand for sustainable energy solutions and environmental remediation has driven unprecedented advancements in materials science over the past decade. Advanced materials—engineered with tailored functionalities—have emerged as pivotal tools in addressing societal challenges, from reducing greenhouse gas emissions to enabling energy autonomy. Historically, innovations like Piezo/triboelectric nanogenerators (P/TENGs) for harvesting ocean energy, catalytic systems for water splitting, and materials for CO2 capture and utilization have redefined the boundaries of material science.

This Special Issue aims to consolidate cutting-edge research at the intersection of advanced materials design, energy harvesting, and environmental remediation. We focus on the following:

  1. Sustainable Energy Harvesting: Innovations in materials for solar, thermal, kinetic, and moisture-driven energy conversion (e.g., hydrogen energy, PENGs, TENGs, and perovskite photovoltaics).
  2. Environmental Cleanup: Advanced adsorbents, catalysts, and biohybrid systems for pollutant removal, carbon capture, and ecosystem restoration (e.g., CO2 reduction reaction, heavy metal removal, and organic matter degradation).
  3. Functional Applications: Integration of materials into real-world systems, including wearable electronics, smart grids, and industrial-scale remediation.

We invite contributions across the following themes:

  1. Novel Material Synthesis: Design of low-cost, high-performance materials (e.g., doped oxides, 2D composites, bio-inspired architectures).
  2. Mechanistic Insights: Fundamental studies on energy conversion pathways (e.g., lattice oxygen vs. adsorbate evolution mechanisms) or pollutant degradation kinetics.
  3. Application Case Studies: Field trials of materials in energy grids, electronic skins, or large-scale remediation projects.
  4. Multi-scale Analysis: From quantum-scale simulations to Earth system modelling.
  5. Techno-economic Assessments: Life-cycle analysis (LCA), energy return on investment (EROI), and scalability evaluations.

Both original research and comprehensive reviews are welcome. Submissions should emphasize innovation, sustainability, and practical relevance, aligning with global priorities such as decarbonization and circular economy.

Prof. Dr. Tao Yang
Prof. Dr. Laipan Zhu
Prof. Dr. Biao Gao
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. Nanomaterials 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 2400 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

  • hydrogen energy
  • energy harvesting
  • environmental cleanup
  • battery
  • functional material

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 3131 KB  
Article
Electrospun Polyimide Nanofibers Modified with Metal Oxide Nanowires and MXene for Photocatalytic Water Purification
by Andrii Lys, Valerii Myndrul, Mykola Pavlenko, Błażej Anastaziak, Pavel Holec, Kateřina Vodseďálková, Emerson Coy, Mikhael Bechelany and Igor Iatsunskyi
Nanomaterials 2025, 15(17), 1371; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano15171371 - 5 Sep 2025
Viewed by 367
Abstract
As the demand for clean water continues to rise, the development of reliable and environmentally sustainable purification methods has become increasingly important. In this study, we describe the production and characterization of electrospun polyimide (PID) nanofibers modified with MXene (Ti3C2 [...] Read more.
As the demand for clean water continues to rise, the development of reliable and environmentally sustainable purification methods has become increasingly important. In this study, we describe the production and characterization of electrospun polyimide (PID) nanofibers modified with MXene (Ti3C2Tx), tungsten trioxide (WO3), and titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanomaterials for improved photocatalytic degradation of rhodamine 6G (R6G), a model organic dye. Superior photocatalytic performance was achieved by suppressing electron–hole recombination, promoting efficient charge carrier separation, and the significant increase in light absorption through the addition of metal oxide nanowires and MXene to the PID matrix. Comprehensive characterization confirms a core–shell nanofiber architecture with TiO2, WO3, and MXene effectively integrated and electronically coupled, consistent with the observed photocatalytic response. The PID/TiO2/WO3/MXene composite exhibited the highest photocatalytic activity among the tested configurations, degrading R6G by 74% in 90 min of light exposure. This enhancement was ascribed to the synergistic interactions between MXene and the metal oxides, which reduced recombination losses and promoted effective charge transfer. The study confirms the suitability of PID-based hybrid nanofibers for wastewater treatment applications. It also points toward future directions focused on scalable production and deployment in the field of environmental remediation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Materials: Sustainable Energy Harvesting, Environmental Cleanup and Functional Application)
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20 pages, 2915 KB  
Article
Green Hydrothermal Synthesis of Mn3O4 Nano-Octahedra Using Carménère Grape Pomace Extract and Evaluation of Their Properties for Energy Storage and Electrocatalysis
by Javier Lorca-Ponce, Paula Valenzuela-Bustamante, Paula Cornejo Retamales, Nicolas Nolan Mella, Valentina Cavieres Ríos, María J. Pérez Velez, Andrés M. Ramírez Ramírez and Leslie Diaz Jalaff
Nanomaterials 2025, 15(16), 1282; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano15161282 - 20 Aug 2025
Viewed by 623
Abstract
In this study, a green hydrothermal synthesis method was employed to produce Mn3O4 and Mn3O4/β-MnO2 nanostructures using EET-50, an organic extract obtained from a by-product of Carménère wine production. The biomolecules in EET-50 acted as [...] Read more.
In this study, a green hydrothermal synthesis method was employed to produce Mn3O4 and Mn3O4/β-MnO2 nanostructures using EET-50, an organic extract obtained from a by-product of Carménère wine production. The biomolecules in EET-50 acted as reducing agents due to their electron-donating functional groups, enabling nanostructure formation without the need for additional chemical reductants. Morphological characterization by SEM revealed that a KMnO4/EET-50 mass ratio of 3:1 led to the synthesis of nano-octahedra alongside rod-like structures, with shorter reaction times favoring the development of isolated nano-octahedra ranging from 100 nm to 170 nm. Structural analyses by XRD and Raman spectroscopy confirmed the formation of mixed-phase Mn3O4/β-MnO2 and Mn3O4 (hausmannite). Electrochemical performance tests demonstrated that Mn3O4 nano-octahedra exhibited a superior specific capacitance of 236.27 F/g at 1 mA/g, surpassing the mixed-phase sample by 28.3%, and showed excellent capacitance retention (99.98%) after 100 cycles at 8 mA/g. Additionally, the Mn3O4 nano-octahedra exhibited enhanced oxygen evolution reaction performance in alkaline media, with an overpotential of 0.430 V vs. RHE and a Tafel slope of 205 mV/dec. These results underscore the potential of Mn3O4 nano-octahedra, synthesized via a green route using grape pomace extract as a reducing agent, offering an environmentally friendly alternative for applications in energy storage and electrocatalysis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Materials: Sustainable Energy Harvesting, Environmental Cleanup and Functional Application)
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Review

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24 pages, 6108 KB  
Review
In Situ Characterization Method to Reveal the Surface Reconstruction Process of an Electrocatalyst
by Yiqin Zhan, Tao Yang, Shuang Liu, Liming Yang, Enhui Wang, Xiangtao Yu, Hongyang Wang, Kuo-Chih Chou and Xinmei Hou
Nanomaterials 2025, 15(12), 917; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano15120917 - 12 Jun 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 713
Abstract
Renewable energy-driven water electrolysis is widely regarded as a pivotal approach for achieving carbon-free hydrogen production. The development of highly efficient electrocatalysts is crucial to advancing the efficiency and scalability of electrolytic water splitting. Recent advancements in characterization techniques have revealed that catalysts [...] Read more.
Renewable energy-driven water electrolysis is widely regarded as a pivotal approach for achieving carbon-free hydrogen production. The development of highly efficient electrocatalysts is crucial to advancing the efficiency and scalability of electrolytic water splitting. Recent advancements in characterization techniques have revealed that catalysts often undergo surface reconstruction during the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER), leading to the formation of real active species. Understanding the surface reconstruction process through advanced characterization methods is essential for the rational design of high-performance catalysts. However, the surface reconstruction of catalysts is a highly complex phenomenon, and conventional ex situ characterization techniques often fall short of capturing the dynamic evolution of the catalyst surface. Consequently, in situ characterization methods have emerged as indispensable tools for elucidating the surface reconstruction process. This paper provides a detailed review of the process of surface reconstruction, the reasons behind it, and the in situ characterization methods, and finally discusses the challenges faced by the characterization methods for the reconstruction of water electrolysis catalysts in future development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Materials: Sustainable Energy Harvesting, Environmental Cleanup and Functional Application)
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