School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, P. R. China.
Chem Soc Rev. 2018 Oct 1;47(19):7339-7368. doi: 10.1039/c8cs00470f.
Development of renewable energy technologies has been a significant area of research amongst scientists with the aim of attaining a sustainable world society. Solar thermal fuels that can capture, convert, store, and release solar energy in the form of heat through reversible photoisomerization of molecular photoswitches such as azobenzene derivatives are currently in the limelight of research. Herein, we provide a state-of-the-art account on the recent advancements in solar thermal fuels based on azobenzene photoswitches. We begin with an overview on the importance of azobenzene-based solar thermal fuels and their fundamentals. Then, we highlight the recent advances in diverse azobenzene materials for solar thermal fuels such as pure azobenzene derivatives, nanocarbon-templated azobenzene, and polymer-templated azobenzene. The basic design concepts of these advanced solar energy storage materials are discussed, and their promising applications are highlighted. We then introduce the recent endeavors in the molecular design of azobenzene derivatives toward efficient solar thermal fuels, and conclude with new perspectives on the future scope, opportunities and challenges. It is expected that continuous pioneering research involving scientists and engineers from diverse technological backgrounds could trigger the rapid advancement of this important interdisciplinary field, which embraces chemistry, physics, engineering, nanoscience, nanotechnology, materials science, polymer science, etc.
可再生能源技术的发展一直是科学家们研究的重要领域，其目标是实现可持续的世界社会。太阳能热燃料可以通过分子光开关（如偶氮苯衍生物）的可逆光异构化，以热的形式捕获、转化、存储和释放太阳能，目前正成为研究的焦点。在此，我们提供了基于偶氮苯光开关的太阳能热燃料的最新进展的最新概述。我们首先概述了基于偶氮苯的太阳能热燃料的重要性及其基本原理。然后，我们重点介绍了各种用于太阳能热燃料的偶氮苯材料的最新进展，如纯偶氮苯衍生物、纳米碳模板化偶氮苯和聚合物模板化偶氮苯。讨论了这些先进太阳能存储材料的基本设计概念，并强调了它们有前途的应用。然后，我们介绍了在设计高效太阳能热燃料的偶氮苯衍生物方面的最新进展，并对未来的前景、机遇和挑战进行了展望。预计涉及化学、物理、工程、纳米科学、纳米技术、材料科学、聚合物科学等多个技术背景的科学家和工程师的持续开拓性研究，将推动这一重要的跨学科领域的快速发展。
