Perspective on Biomass-Based Cotton-Derived Nanocarbon for Multifunctional Energy Storage and Harvesting Applications

Abstract

The demand for renewable-energy-based efficient systems is a practical indication to develop sustainable energy nanomaterials for energy storage and conversion to reduce the use of pollution-based nonrenewable energy systems. The use of biomass-derived energy components is a new age for the development of sustainable energy electrode nanomaterials. Among biomass, cotton-based electrodes are more popular, as they are cost-effective and efficient energy materials. Cotton-plant-derived porous or pristine nanocarbons have good textural and morphological properties with high specific surface area, hierarchical porous structure, and large pore volume. The functionalization, addition of active moieties, and easy synthetic routes improve the properties and enhance the performance of various electronic devices. The functionalization of derived materials with a heteroatom perturbs the electrical neutrality of the framework. The incorporation of active sites enhances the surface area and creates defects in the framework. These properties speed up the charge storage and energy conversion reaction for better performance of fabricated devices. This Review gives a detailed understanding and advancements about cotton-derived energy nanomaterial. Also, it gives insight about the key factors affecting the performance of cotton-based electrodes, electrolytes, and other components of energy devices. This Review concludes with the cotton-plant-derived supercapacitor, fuel cell, and battery, with a deep insight into their physicochemical properties. This Review also discusses the role of the active mass of the material used for the different device fabrications, which alters the performance. Further, a deep insight has been provided with a brief discussion of other electronic devices like photovoltaic, triboelectric, and piezoelectric devices based on cotton-derived nanocarbon.