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Conventional and emerging refrigeration technologies either use refrigerants with high-global warming potential (GWP) or require application of strong fields. Now, researchers demonstrate ionocaloric refrigeration based on the electrochemical tuning of the melting behaviour of zero-GWP materials under low applied field strength.
The limited durability of perovskite photovoltaics has held back the technology. New research unveils a class of low-dimensionality perovskites based on metals such as zinc, cobalt or copper that protects the 3D perovskite solar absorber from degradation while affording high efficiency.
Solid-state batteries are widely regarded as one of the next promising energy storage technologies. Here, Wolfgang Zeier and Juergen Janek review recent research directions and advances in the development of solid-state batteries and discuss ways to tackle the remaining challenges for commercialization.
The design of low-dimensional interface materials for perovskite solar cells is limited in the choice of the metal cation. By processing metal and ammonium halides together, Ye et al. expand the metal cation library for these interface materials.
Oxygen redox provides an opportunity to realize the high-energy potential of battery cathodes, but the formation of molecular O2 from the oxidation of oxide ions significantly reduces the cycling stability. Now, the nature of electron-holes on oxide ions is reported, providing insights into realizing a truly reversible oxygen–redox cathode.
Between 2013 and 2017, China enacted a series of policies to improve air quality by promoting a switch to cleaner fuels for households. This study examines the changes in energy cost and associated energy burden across regions and income groups during this period, finding an increased burden on rural households.
The mechanism of oxygen redox in high-energy transition metal oxide cathodes is elusive. Here the authors illustrate the nature of the electron-hole states on oxide ions, offering insights for realizing reversible, high-voltage cathodes.
The Russia–Ukraine war triggered an energy crisis that affected the cost of many goods and services. Guan et al. model the direct and indirect impacts of increased energy prices across expenditure groups and countries, finding temporary increases in total household energy costs of 63–113% under different scenarios.
Lithium metal batteries potentially offer high energy densities but suffer from critical problems such as uncontrolled lithium deposition, particularly under fast charging. Now, an efficient strategy is reported to enable highly reversible deposition through the growth of faceted single-crystalline lithium on a lithiophobic substrate.
Zero–gap CO/CO2 electrolyzers typically exhibit low energy conversion efficiency at high reactant conversion due to current losses associated with the parasitic production of H2. Now, an electrolyzer using an electrocatalyst in bulk heterojunction with a hydrophobic covalent organic framework has maintained high energy efficiency at near unity reactant conversion.
The performance of solid electrolytes is hindered by instabilities caused by the formation of lithium intrusions. The mechanism responsible for these intrusions is not well understood. Experiments with a scanning electron microscopy setup revealed that applied stresses can control the probability of intrusion formation and influence the propagation behaviour.
Controlling the nucleation and growth is essential for enabling long-life Li-metal batteries. Here the authors report the growth of faceted single-crystalline Li seeds on a lithiophobic Fe/LiF composite substrate that enables dense Li deposition under fast-charging conditions.
Solar cells based on 3D/2D perovskite heterostructures show promising performance, but ion diffusion limits the device stability. Now Luo et al. suppress ion diffusion by inserting a cross-linked polymer between the 2D and 3D layers, improving the operational stability.
Concerns about energy and transport poverty are critical to the net-zero transition but are growing in the wake of recent global events. This study presents findings from focus groups with the public and expert interviews in the United Kingdom on support for different policy options to address these challenges.
Lithium-ion batteries are prone to unpredictable failure during fast charging, known as lithium plating. Now, innovative testing protocols can quickly quantify lithium plating and inform battery design strategies to mitigate it.
Perovskite solar cells hold potential for space applications yet they need to withstand harsh space stressors. Now, researchers develop a low-cost and lightweight barrier layer of silicon oxide thermally evaporated atop the finished solar cell that affords protection against proton radiation, atomic oxygen and alpha particles.
Direct seawater electrolysis is an approach to produce hydrogen from an abundant water source, but current catalysts face performance and durability challenges. Here Guo et al. introduce a hard Lewis acid layer on the catalyst surface that generates local alkalinity, facilitating water splitting and minimizing degradation.
