Flexible electrodes, particularly paper electrodes modified with polypyrrole, have shown promise in energy-related applications. We have earlier demonstrated the usage of paper electrodes modified with polypyrrole as a flexible and suitable photoanode for photoelectrochemical water splitting (PEC). Further, modification of this electrode system with an appropriate tandem absorber system for solar fuel production is interesting in developing efficient photoanodes. In this study, we study the PEC performance of flexible polypyrrole-based paper photoanodes (PPy-PAs) by decorating them with rGO@Cu2Zn- SnS4 chalcopyrites (rGO@CZTS/PPy-PAs). The lower bandgap (~ 1.5 eV) of the rGO@CZTS/PPy-PAs system allows for efficient visible light absorption, substantially improving PEC water-splitting reactions. The rGO@CZTS/PPy-PAs exhibited an enhanced current density of ~ 13.2 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V vs RHE, ABPE of ~ 1.5%, and a hydrogen evolution rate of 177 μmoles/min/cm2. Overall, rGO@CZTS/PPy-PAs showed 2.1-fold, 1.1-fold, and 1.4-fold enhancement in photocurrent activity over PPy-PAs, CZTS/PPy-PAs, and rGO/PPy-PAs, respectively. The usability of rGO@CZTS/PPy-PAs is established in the form of stable photocurrent for more than 200 min. These findings open new possibilities for developing modified PPy PAs as flexible PEs for efficient solar-driven PEC devices and give directions on improving flexible PEs for flexible and efficient solar-driven PEC systems.

Herein, the present work focuses on the effective counter electrode for dye-sensitized solar cells. The bottom–up approach was adapted to synthesize Mn2O3 nanorods via the hydrothermal method and the reduced graphene oxide was merged with Mn2O3 to prepare a nanocomposite. The prepared nanocomposites were subjected to physio-chemical and morphological characterizations which revealed the crystalline nature of Mn2O3 nanorods. The purity level rGO was characterized using the Raman spectrum and the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy employed to find the functional groups. The morphological micrographs were visualized using SEM and TEM and the high aspect ratio Mn2O3 nanorods were observed with 5–7 nm and supported by rGO sheets. The electrocatalytic nature and corrosion properties of the counter electrode towards the iodide electrolyte were studied using a symmetrical cell. The as-synthesized nanocomposites were introduced as counter electrodes for DSSC and produced 4.11% of photoconversion efficiency with lower charge transfer resistance. The fabricated DSSC devices were undergone for stability tests for indoor and outdoor atmospheres, the DSSC stability showed 93% and 80% respectively for 150 days.

Graphene-modified melamine sponges (RGO-MSs) were prepared, as adsorbents with photothermal conversion ability, utilizing solar energy to achieve heavy oil temperature rise, viscosity reduction, and efficient adsorption recovery of highly viscous oil. The RGO-MSs were prepared through a simple impregnation method. The photothermal performance and heavy oil adsorption performances of RGO-MSs with different densities and thicknesses were observed. It was found that as the density increases, the thermal conductivity of RGO-MS increases too, leading to the increase of the average oil absorption rate. The reduction of thickness is beneficial to improving of the adsorption rate. The prepared RGO-MS with a density of 21.5 mg/cm−3 and a height of 1 cm (RGO-MS-3-1) shows excellent mechanical properties and fatigue resistance. Cyclic adsorption–desorption of RGO-MS-3-1 was achieved through extrusion/ ethanol washing. After 10 cycles of reuse through extrusion, the adsorption capacity decreased from 52.90 to 50.02 g g− 1, with a loss of 5.4%. The material was then washed with petroleum ether and ethanol in turn. Its adsorption capacity can restored to 98.8% of the initial value, showing a promising application prospect on heavy oil leakage treatment. The easily prepared RGO-MS exhibits excellent light absorption and photothermal oil adsorption properties, providing a good solution for the problem of heavy oil leakage at sea.

This study focuses on analyzing the energy-saving effects of the recirculation aquaculture system using seawater source heat pumps and solar power generation. Based on the thermal load analysis conducted using the transient system simulation tool, the annual energy consumption of the recirculation aquaculture system was analyzed and the energy-saving effects of utilizing the photovoltaic system was evaluated. When analyzing the heat load, the sea areas where the fish farms are located, the type of breeding tank, and the circulation rate of breeding water were taken into consideration. In addition, a method for determining the appropriate capacity for each operation time was examined when applying the energy storage system instead of the existing diesel generator as an emergency power, which is required to maintain the water temperature of breeding water during power outage. The results suggest that, among the four seas considered, Jeju should be estimated to achieve the highest energy-saving performance using the solar power generation, with approximately 45% energy savings.

Graphene quantum dots (GQDs) are zero-dimensional carbonous materials with exceptional physical and chemical properties such as a tuneable band gap, good conductivity, quantum confinement, and edge effect. The introduction of GQDs in various layers of solar cells (SCs) such as hole transport layer (HTL), electron transport materials (ETM), cathode interlayer (CIL), photoanode materials (PAM), counter electrode (CE), and transparent conducting electrode (TCE) could improve the solar energy (SE) harvesting, separation and transportation of electrons and hole, thus ultimately enhance the overall performance and stability of SCs. The incorporation of GQDs in various layers such as HTL, ETM, CIL, PAM, CE, and TCE achieved photo conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of 18.63, 21.1, 12.81, 9.41, 8.1, and 3.66%, respectively. Furthermore, GQDs improved stabilities such as resistance to degradation for HTL (up to 77%), ETM (80%), resistance to UV light for ETM (94%), resistance to temperature in ETM (90%), and bending stabilities after 1000 cycles for HTL (88%) and for TCE (90%). There are reviews focused on the utilization of different carbon-structured materials such as graphene, carbon nanotubes (CNT), fullerenes, and carbon dots in SCs applications. More specifically, the utilization of GQDs for SCs is limited and yet to be explored in greater detail. This review mainly focuses on the recent advancement of various techniques of production of GQDs synthesis, utilization of GQDs in various layers like HTL, ETM, CIL, PAM, CE, and TCE for the enhancement of PCE, and the stability of SCs. As a result, we believe that an exclusive study on GQDs-sensitized solar cells (GQDSSCs) could provide an in-depth analysis of the recent progress, achievements, and challenges.

Photoanode optimization is a fascinating technique for enlightening the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). In this present study, V2O5/ ZnO and reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-V2O5/ZnO nanocomposites (NCs) were prepared by the solid-state technique and used as photoanodes for DSSCs. A wet chemical technique was implemented to generate individual V2O5 and ZnO nanoparticles (NPs). The structural characteristics of the as-synthesized NCs were investigated and confirmed using powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS), and Scanning electron microscope (SEM) with energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis. The average crystallite size (D) of the as-synthesized V2O5/ ZnO and rGO-V2O5/ZnO NCs was determined by Debye-Scherer’s formula. The bandgap (eV) energy was calculated from Tauc’s plots, and the bonding nature and detection of the excitation of electrons were investigated using the Ultra violet (UV) visible spectra, Fourier Transform infrared (FTIR) and photoluminescence (PL) spectral analysis. Electrical studies like Hall effect analysis and the Nyquist plots are also described. The V2O5/ ZnO and rGO-V2O5/ZnO NCs based DSSCs exhibited 0.64% and 1.27% of PCE and the short circuit current densities and open circuit voltages improved from 7.10 to 11.28 mA/cm2 and from 0.57 to 0.68 V, respectively.

Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) are promising materials for the construction of energy devices, particularly organic solar cells. In the electrospinning process, polyacrylonitrile (PAN) has been utilized to generate nanofibers, which is the simplest and most popular method of creating carbon nanofibers (CNFs) followed by carbonization. The CNFs are coated on stainless steel (SS) plates and involve an electropolymerization process. The prepared Cu, CNF, CNF–Cu, PANI, PANI–Cu, CNF–PANI, and CNF–PANI–Cu electrode materials’ electrical conductivity was evaluated using cyclic voltammetry (CV) technique in 1 M H2SO4 electrolyte solution. Compared to others, the CNF–PANI–Cu electrode has higher conductivity that range is 3.0 mA. Moreover, the PANI, CNF–PANI, and CNF–PANI–Cu are coated on FTO plates and characterized for their optical properties (absorbance, transmittance, and emission) and electrical properties (CV and Impedance) for organic solar cell application. The functional groups, and morphology-average roughness of the electrode materials found by FT–IR, XRD, XPS, SEM, and TGA exhibit a strong correlation with each other. Finally, the electrode materials that have been characterized serve to support and act as the nature of the hole transport for organic solar cells.

Recently, the electron transport layer (ETL) has become one of the key components for high-performance perovskite solar cell (PSC). This study is motivated by the nonreproducible performance of ETL made of spin coated SnO2 applied to a PSC. We made a comparative study between tin oxide deposited by atomic layer deposition (ALD) or spin coating to be used as an ETL in N-I-P PSC. 15 nm-thick Tin oxide thin films were deposited by ALD using tetrakisdimethylanmiotin (TDMASn) and using reactant ozone at 120 °C. PSC using ALD SnO2 as ETL showed a maximum efficiency of 18.97 %, and PSC using spin coated SnO2 showed a maximum efficiency of 18.46 %. This is because the short circuit current (Jsc) of PSC using the ALD SnO2 layer was 0.75 mA/cm2 higher than that of the spin coated SnO2. This result can be attributed to the fact that the electron transfer distance from the perovskite is constant due to the thickness uniformity of ALD SnO2. Therefore ALD SnO2 is a candidate as a ETL for use in PSC vacuum deposition.