Conversion of Water and CO2 to Fuels using Solar E nergy: Science, Technology and Materials

This book provides researchers interested in solar fuel generation a comprehensive understanding of the emerging technologies for hydrogen generation via water splitting and hydrocarbon fuel production by CO2 recycling. The book presents the fundamental science, technologies, guidelines for properly conducting laboratory experiments, information on device characterization techniques, and more importantly, the materials that are being explored and the challenges and opportunities in their development.

Solid catalysts form the heart of every solar fuel generation technology. The catalyst materials largely decide the success of a technology. In principle, these materials should be affordable, environmentally benign, plentiful, and fabricated by scalable technologies; however, there are significant challenges involved in developing such materials to the level of a commercial product. For the rapid advancement of the field, it is necessary for the researchers, particularly for those who are entering the field, to have a clear knowledge about various materials and fabrication techniques explored so far, the benefits and challenges associated with each, their commercial viability and the current research directions. For this reason, almost 60% of the book is dedicated to the discussions on materials and properties.