Materials for solar fuels and chemicals

Joseph H Montoya; Linsey C Seitz; Pongkarn Chakthranont; Aleksandra Vojvodic; Thomas F Jaramillo; Jens K Nørskov

doi:10.1038/nmat4778

Materials for solar fuels and chemicals

Nat Mater. 2016 Dec 20;16(1):70-81. doi: 10.1038/nmat4778.

Authors

Joseph H Montoya^{1

2

3}, Linsey C Seitz^{1

2

3}, Pongkarn Chakthranont^{1

2}, Aleksandra Vojvodic^{1

2}, Thomas F Jaramillo^{1

2}, Jens K Nørskov^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ SUNCAT Center for Interface Science and Catalysis, Department of Chemical Engineering, Stanford University, Shriram Center, 443 Via Ortega, Stanford, California 94305, USA.
² SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA.
³ Energy Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, California 94720, USA.

PMID: 27994241
DOI: 10.1038/nmat4778

Abstract

The conversion of sunlight into fuels and chemicals is an attractive prospect for the storage of renewable energy, and photoelectrocatalytic technologies represent a pathway by which solar fuels might be realized. However, there are numerous scientific challenges in developing these technologies. These include finding suitable materials for the absorption of incident photons, developing more efficient catalysts for both water splitting and the production of fuels, and understanding how interfaces between catalysts, photoabsorbers and electrolytes can be designed to minimize losses and resist degradation. In this Review, we highlight recent milestones in these areas and some key scientific challenges remaining between the current state of the art and a technology that can effectively convert sunlight into fuels and chemicals.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.