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This review organizes the current state of knowledge on the role of financial markets in energy transition. The originality of the study lies in the delimitation of its scope and diagnosis of research trends concerning the role of financing, innovation, and financial development sources. The study sets out to identify the role of the financial market in the energy transition process and present the state-of-the-art and main research focuses. For this purpose, a literature review was carried out based on the search results from the Web of Science database and using VOSViewer software, version 1.6.20. The analysis of 54 papers in the final sample allowed us to pinpoint the key links between financial markets and energy transition. Capital markets support green initiatives, with green bonds as a primary funding source. Blockchain and fintech technologies also significantly contribute to transition by offering innovative solutions. Additionally, a range of papers examine the costs associated with energy transition and the role of financial instruments in managing these. Regulatory challenges are another significant focus. This comprehensive analysis underscores the multifaceted relationship between financial markets and energy transition, providing insights into the current trends and the critical role of finance in fostering a sustainable future.

The utilization of autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has increased rapidly due to their ability to perform a variety of tasks, including industrial inspection. Conducting testing with actual flights within industrial facilities proves to be both expensive and hazardous, posing risks to the system, the facilities, and their personnel. This paper presents an innovative and reliable methodology for developing such applications, ensuring safety and efficiency throughout the process. It involves a staged transition from simulation to reality, wherein various components are validated at each stage. This iterative approach facilitates error identification and resolution, enabling subsequent real flights to be conducted with enhanced safety after validating the remainder of the system. Furthermore, this article showcases two use cases: wind turbine inspection and photovoltaic plant inspection. By implementing the suggested methodology, these applications were successfully developed in an efficient and secure manner.

AbstractSolar fuels offer a promising approach to provide sustainable fuels by harnessing sunlight1,2. Following a decade of advancement, Cu2O photocathodes are capable of delivering a performance comparable to that of photoelectrodes with established photovoltaic materials3–5. However, considerable bulk charge carrier recombination that is poorly understood still limits further advances in performance6. Here we demonstrate performance of Cu2O photocathodes beyond the state-of-the-art by exploiting a new conceptual understanding of carrier recombination and transport in single-crystal Cu2O thin films. Using ambient liquid-phase epitaxy, we present a new method to grow single-crystal Cu2O samples with three crystal orientations. Broadband femtosecond transient reflection spectroscopy measurements were used to quantify anisotropic optoelectronic properties, through which the carrier mobility along the [111] direction was found to be an order of magnitude higher than those along other orientations. Driven by these findings, we developed a polycrystalline Cu2O photocathode with an extraordinarily pure (111) orientation and (111) terminating facets using a simple and low-cost method, which delivers 7 mA cm−2 current density (more than 70% improvement compared to that of state-of-the-art electrodeposited devices) at 0.5 V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode under air mass 1.5 G illumination, and stable operation over at least 120 h.

Pyroelectric energy harvesting has the ability to transform wasted heat into useful energy and as such has a potential to create “green” energy from freely available sources such as ambient temperature changes, and contribute to the fight against climate change. Current pyroelectrics applications are limited to low-power electronics, portable systems or tasks needing only very low range of power (μW–mW). Developing further this highly promising technology should ultimately lead to the creation of more powerful, autonomous and self-powered electronic devices that could one day use to recycle currently “lost” thermal energy to power electronic devices in both domestic and industrial settings. To the best of our knowledge, hexagonal phase ZnS (wurtzite ZnS) has not been studied as a possible energy harvesting pyroelectric material despite w-ZnS being isostructural to the well-exploited and widely praised hexagonal ZnO [1]. In addition, the Tc temperature (1020 ˚C for bulk material) is high enough for ZnS that it has the ability to operate at higher temperature that are good match with the working temperature of power plants and automobiles, and hence w-ZnS ceramics should have a potential to be used in pyroelectric harvesters of waste heat coming from those activities [2]. Here we report on the pyroelectric output registered for a wurtzite phase ZnS ceramic fabricated as part of our project. To probe the pyroelectric output for a w-ZnS ceramic a simple device (a “pyro-cell”) was created by evaporating gold electrods on both sides of a ceramic sample, which was mounted on a Cu-metalized rectangular insulating base (vetronite) using silver paint. This device is stable from room temperature up to approximately 180°C. Two different heating and cooling testing set-ups were established: Set-up n°1 used an industrial scale laser, providing a source with fast temperature change, and Set-up n°2 had a standard lab hot plate heating element, providing a much slower temperature change. The characterization required an accurate measurement of the currents of the order of 10-9 A. In addition, using the Pyroelectric Test System (PK‐SPIV17T, State College, PA, USA) with a Keithley 6517 B Picoammeter, we were able to measure the pyroelectric coefficient and monitor its change at different frequencies as a function of temperature from 20 °C up to 150° C, with a heating rate of between 2 and 10 °C/min. Figure 1: Pyroelectric current measurements on an ZnS ceramic sample, using testing set-up n°1. The horizontal axis shows the time (seconds). References [1] Y. Yang, W. Guo, K.C. Pradel, G. Zhu, Y. Zhou, Y. Zhang, Y. Hu, L. Lin, Z. Lin Wang, “Pyroelectric Nanogenerators for Harvesting Thermoelectric Energy”, Nano Lett, 12 (6), 2012, 2833–2838 [2] L.A. Chavez, F.O. Zayas Jimenez, B.R. Wilburn, L.C. Delfin, H. Kim, N. Love, Y. Lin, “Characterization of Thermal Energy Harvesting Using Pyroelectric Ceramics at Elevated Temperatures”, Energy Harvesting and Systems, 5(1-2), 2018, 3–10 This project was also partially supported by the Piano triennale di realizzazione 2019-2021 della ricerca di sistema elettrico nazionale – Progetto 1.3 Materiali di frontiera per usi energetici (C.U.P. code: I34I19005780001).

Results of tests into the energy-efficiency of belt conveyor transportation systems indicate that the energy consumption of their drive mechanisms can be limited by lowering the main resistances in the conveyor. The main component of these resistances is represented by belt indentation rolling resistance. Limiting its value will allow a reduction in the amount of energy consumed by the drive mechanisms. This article presents a test rig which enables uncomplicated evaluations of such rolling resistances. It also presents the results of comparative tests performed for five steel-cord conveyor belts. The tests involved a standard belt, a refurbished belt and three energy-saving belts. As temperature significantly influences the values of belt indentation rolling resistance, the tests were performed in both positive and negative temperatures. The results indicate that when compared with the standard belt, the refurbished and the energy-efficient belts generate higher and lower indentation rolling resistances, respectively. In order to demonstrate practical advantages resulting from the use of energy-saving belts, this article also includes calculations of the power demand of a conveyor drive mechanism during one calendar year, as measured on a belt conveyor operated in a mine. The replacement of a standard belt with a refurbished belt generates a power demand higher by 4.8%, and with an energy-efficient belt—lower by 15.3%.

ABSTRACT: Thermo-electrochemical cells (TECs) are a new kind of energy conversion device that can convert thermal energy into electricity. TECs can be integrated with supercapacitors (SCs) to store the generated electricity. TECs consist of two major components namely electrodes and electrolyte. The selection of appropriate electrode materials with rational nanostructured design should improve the thermoelectrochemical performance of the TECs. In this study, bilayer of nickel cobalt selenide nanowires was successfully grown on activated carbon cloth (NCS/ACC) via one step hydrothermal method and its electrochemical performance was evaluated and compared with nickel selenide (NS/ACC) and cobalt selenide on activated carbon cloth (CS/ACC). NCS/ACC exhibited the best electrochemical performance compared to other electrodes, leading to its further investigation in an asymmetric supercapacitor (ASC) configuration with activated carbon (AC) as the cathode. The NCS/ACC ASC demonstrated superior rate capability with 85% capacitive retention after 10,000 cycles, along with a high specific energy (28 Wh kg-1) and specific power (646 W kg-1). Subsequently, the NCS/ACC electrode was employed in a thermo-electrochemical cell (TEC) for heat to electricity conversion, revealing a Seebeck coefficient of -2 mV/K with high reversibility. Thereby, NCS/ACC electrode can be a suitable candidate for bi-functional applications, showcasing its efficacy in both supercapacitors and heat to electricity conversion technologies. KEYWORDS: Heat to electricity conversion; Supercapacitors; Electrodes; Metal selenide; Thermo-Electrochemical Cell. TRANSLATE is a €3.4 million EU-funded research project that aims to develop a new nanofluidic platform technology to effectively convert waste heat to electricity. This technology has the potential to improve the energy efficiency of many devices and systems, and provide a radically new zero-emission power source. The TRANSLATE project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement number 964251, for the action of 'The Recycling of waste heat through the Application of Nanofluidic ChannelS: Advances in the Conversion of Thermal to Electrical energy'. More information can be be found on the TRANSLATE project website: https://translate-energy.eu/