J. Mater. Sci. Technol. ›› 2024, Vol. 176: 236-257.DOI: 10.1016/j.jmst.2023.08.030

• Research article • Previous Articles    

Recent progress in hydrogen: From solar to solar cell

Yanlin Lia, Zhu Maa,*, Shanyue Houa, Qianyu Liua, Guangyuan Yana, Xiaoshan Lia, Tangjie Yua, Zhuowei Dua, Junbo Yanga, Yi Chena, Wei Youa, Qiang Yanga, Yan Xianga, Shufang Tanga, Xuelin Yuea, Meng Zhanga, Wenfeng Zhanga, Jian Yua, Yuelong Huanga, Jiale Xiea, Chun Tanga, Yaohua Maib,*, Kuan Sunc,*   

  1. aSchool of New Energy and Materials, Southwest Petroleum University (SWPU), Chengdu 610500, China;
    bInstitute of New Energy Technology, College of Information Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China;
    cKey Laboratory of Low-grade Energy Utilization Technologies and Systems (MoE), School of Energy and Power Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400044, China
  • Received:2023-05-09 Revised:2023-08-21 Accepted:2023-08-30 Published:2024-03-20 Online:2024-03-15
  • Contact: *E-mail addresses: deve198509@163.com (Z. Ma), yaohuamai@jnu.edu.cn (Y. Mai), kuan.sun@cqu.edu.cn (K. Sun).
  • About author:Yanlin Li obtained his bachelor degree from Southwest Petroleum University. He is currently an M.S. candidate at the Department of New Energy and Materials, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu, under the supervision of Prof. Zhu Ma. His current research focuses on projects about the design of Photovoltaic-Electrolysis devices.
    Zhu Ma pursued his postdoctoral research at the Depart-ment of Electrical Engineering at UCLA and the California Center for Nanoscale Studies (CNSI). In 2016, he joined the College of Materials Science and Engineering, South-west Petroleum University as a professor. Currently, his research focuses on metal-halide perovskite devices and photovoltaic-electrolysis.
    Yaohua Mai received his Ph.D. degree from Nankai Uni-versity and Forschungszentrum Jülich in 2006. After that, he became a post-doctoral researcher at Utrecht Univer-sity. He is now professor and director of the Institute of New Energy Technology (iNET) at Jinan University. He is mainly working on thin film and c-Si based photovoltaic materials and devices.
    Kuan Sun received his Ph.D. degree from the National University of Singapore (NUS), and postdoctoral experi-ence at the University of Melbourne and NUS. He was a visiting scholar at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and Max-Planck Institute for Polymer Research. His cur-rent research interests include functional materials and devices for photovoltaic, thermoelectric, and photother-mal energy conversions.

Abstract: Hydrogen, meeting the requirements of sustainable development, is regarded as the ultimate energy in the 21st century. Due to the inexhaustible and feasible of solar energy, solar water splitting is an immensely promising strategy for environmental-friendly hydrogen production, which not only overcomes the fluctuation and intermittency but also contributes to achieving the mission of global “Carbon Neutrality and Carbon Peaking”. However, there is still a lack of a comprehensive overview focusing on hydrogen progress with a discussion of development from solar energy to solar cells. Herein, we emphasize several solar-to-hydrogen pathways from the basic concepts and principles and focus on photovoltaic-electrolysis and photoelectrochemical/photovoltaic systems, which have achieved solar-to-hydrogen (STH) efficiency of over 10% and have extremely promising for large-scale application. In addition, we summarize the challenges and opportunities faced in this field including configuration design, electrode materials, and performance evaluation. Finally, perspectives on the potential commercial application and scientific research for the further development of solar-to-hydrogen are analyzed and presented.

Key words: Hydrogen, Photovoltaics, Catalysis, STH efficiency, Integrated module