Volume 9 Issue 8, August 2024

The understanding of justice in the energy sector has now been harmonized across stakeholders, causing risk, reward and — in particular — responsibility to be reallocated towards energy companies and governments. Energy decision-makers today will be held legally accountable for past decisions, and this will influence how decisions are made today.

Electrochemical reduction of CO₂ from flue gas shows promise for producing chemicals and fuels from waste streams, but its implementation is challenged by the presence of SO₂ impurities. Research now demonstrates a catalyst that effectively converts CO₂ to multi-carbon products while tolerating SO₂ impurities, advancing the feasibility of industrial CO₂ utilization.

Lithium-metal batteries represent a promising next-generation power source, but there is a trade-off between their energy density and cyclic stability. Now, an electrolyte designed to feature large solvation clustering structures enables a large lithium-metal pouch cell with a boosted energy density of 500 Wh kg⁻¹ and an extended lifespan.

The surfaces of polycrystalline perovskite films impact the long-term performance of perovskite solar cells, yet their microstructure is not well understood. Research now reveals the existence of concave grain structures at the surface of the perovskite layer facing the electron transport layer, and their detrimental effect on the stability of the interface and eventually the devices.

High-efficiency perovskite solar cells suffer from limited operational stability. Research now shows that perovskitoid-based interlayers with strong metal halide octahedral connectivity and both out-of-plane and in-plane crystal orientations address this issue.

Zero-emission trucks will benefit from rapidly falling costs of batteries and fuel cells, which will enable their fast market diffusion. Industry and policy must prepare for battery-electric trucks with respect to their manufacturing and supply, adequate charging infrastructure and electricity grid expansions, as well as regulation.

Community solar, a business model where multiple customers buy output from shared solar systems, has expanded solar access among multifamily housing occupants, renters, and low-income households. Policies to enable community solar could be expanded and benefits of access augmented through targeted measures to support community solar adoption in underserved communities.

The Solar Mamas programme for energy transition in Zanzibar, Tanzania, has been analysed through a combined lens of care and epistemic injustice. The case study illustrates that interventions that centre energy care work and its gendered dimensions in locally led energy-transition initiatives can disrupt established gender norms and produce better project outcomes.

A high-performance ternary organic solar cell (OSC) is developed through rational design of a nonfullerene guest acceptor. The optimized single-junction OSC shows reduced photon and carrier losses, leading to a high power conversion efficiency of more than 20%.

The membrane separating anode from cathode in CO₂ electrolysers plays a key role in determining the performance, stability and material selection of the device. Here the authors argue that bipolar membranes could become the primary choice for scarce-metal-free, stable and efficient CO₂ electrolysers.

Smart temperature-responsive materials could enhance battery thermal safety management; however, current designs lack the necessary responsiveness for both performance and safety. Here the authors demonstrate a material that swiftly transitions from thermal transmission to isolation during thermal runaway in battery modules, thereby ensuring battery safety.

Interventions prioritizing care and knowledge in locally led energy transition initiatives may contribute to the disruption of established gender norms. A new study on the Solar Mamas programme in Zanzibar supports this idea.

Drawing from data on 11 US states, here the authors find evidence to suggest that community solar and other alternative solar products have the potential to expand solar access among lower-income and renter households.

Graphene-based membranes are attractive for capturing CO₂, with separation selectivity typically achieved by control of pore size. Here Hsu et al. incorporate pyridinic nitrogen species at the pore edges in graphene, leading to competitive CO₂ binding and enhanced separation performance.

Molecular design is key to the power conversion efficiency in organic photovoltaics. Jiang, Sun, Xu et al. develop a non-fullerene acceptor with asymmetric structure and phenyl-substituted side chains that minimizes photon and carrier losses, enabling 20.2% efficiency.

Electrolyte design is crucial for lithium metal battery development. Here the authors report an electrolyte with a compact solvation structure on the nanometre scale that facilitates fast interfacial reaction kinetics and improves battery performance.

Interfaces are crucial to the operation of perovskite solar cells. Xiao et al. report the existence of detrimental grain surface concavities and their removal with molecular additives to achieve solar cells with improved efficiency and stability.

While the high concentration of CO₂ in flue gas makes it an attractive feedstock for electrocatalytic production of useful molecules, SO₂ contaminants can poison catalysts. Here the authors report a polymer/catalyst/ionomer heterojunction design with hydrophobic and hydrophilic domains that improves the SO₂ tolerance of a Cu catalyst.

China’s continuing reliance on coal in district heating risks considerable carbon lock-in and hinders decommissioning of coal-fired electricity generation. This work outlines how the government can achieve its proposal to decarbonize district heating.

The costs of battery and fuel cell systems for zero-emission trucks are primed to decline much faster than expected, boosting prospects for their fast global diffusion and electrification of freight transport, with battery-electric trucks probably leading.