Smart materials for sustainable energy

Abstract

In the new era of technologies, different smart or responsive materials are used which can respond to external stimuli, such as a specific amount of mechanical stress, pressure, temperature, pH, or sunlight radiations, by modifying their shape or dimensions or mechanical properties. As global temperatures rise and weather patterns become more erratic and severe. The risk to communities with energy-passive structures is growing, smart materials such as smart rooftops, thermoelectrics, photovoltaics, pyroelectrics, chromoactive, photoluminescent, as well as other innovations, help to conserve renewable energy smartly and sustainably. This review paper reflects on the applications of different smart materials as renewable smart resources. Intelligent quantum dot solar cells, Schottky solar cells, organic thin-film photovoltaic cells, dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), and organic-inorganic heterojunction solar cells have high conversion efficiency, low cost, and possess wide absorption spectra that reach the near-infrared range. Biomechanical energy can be transformed into green energy using triboelectric and piezoelectric-based smart nanogenerators such as zinc oxide nanowires. Shape memory materials such as Nitinol (NiTi) have been embedded in the wind turbine blades to enhance aerodynamic efficiency. Piezoelectric nanogenerators can convert mechanical energy directly into electrical energy by using wireless sensors to harvest energy from moving water in hydroelectric power plants. Thermoelectric materials such as silver antimony telluride (AgSbTe2) offer a sustainable energy option, which employs industrial waste heat to produce power. Smart materials like graphene are more reliable and effective than carbon nanotubes for storing green hydrogen. Smart non-enzymatic biofuel cells are used in biomedical gadgets such as anesthesia machines and pacemakers, which are self-powered and have great sensitivity. Shape memory materials (SMM) are introduced in natural gas and oil reservoirs because they offer exceptional qualities such as the shape memory effect (SME), lightweight, corrosion resistance, and superelasticity, which enhance the performance and robustness of offshore industries. These new advancements, challenges, and applications of smart materials for renewable energy are covered in this review paper.