Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
Solar energy is an attractive clean energy source but storage and transportation is often a problem. Solar-light-driven water splitting provides a promising way to store and utilise abundant solar energy in the form of gaseous hydrogen. High temperature-promoted photocatalytic water splitting systems, described in this article, could open up a new direction for innovation in this field, furthering SDG 7 and 9.
Furthering SDG 7, this paper suggests a new way of preparing n-type Mg3Sb2-based Zintl compounds with high thermoelectric performance. It demonstrates that a large amount of extra Mg is not needed to achieve high ZT as long as Mg vacancies are suppressed and carrier concentration is properly optimized.
Nepal has been suffering from a serious energy crisis for decades. It has severely affected its economic, social and political development. This paper furthers SDGs 7, 9 and 12 by showing that renewable resources are crucial not only for mitigating the present energy crisis, but also to ultimately provide energy independence for Nepal by establishing reliable and secure sources of energy.
This study advances SDGs 7, 9 and 12 by evaluating the environmental sustainability of biomass utilisation for small-scale power generation in rural communities, with a focus on the Southeast Asian context. Rice and coconut residues are considered for direct combustion and gasification, and livestock manure for anaerobic digestion. The results of this study are expected to support the development of sustainable bioenergy in off-grid rural communities as well as those that aim for greater energy independence.
Directly contributing to SDGs 7 (affordable and clean energy), 12 (responsible consumption and production) and 13 (climate action), this Elsevier Atlas Award winning article analyses the feasibility of powering the Americas with renewable energy by 2030.
To achieve SDG 7 (Affordable and clean energy) and SDG 13 (climate action) we need reliable and robust renewable energy sources. Solar photovoltaics (PV) is a very promising and rapidly growing technology (particularly in the developing world), but one of the problems of solar panels is that they “soil” – ie over time they become damaged by dust / pollution / animal waste / moss etc, and this limits their performance. This Joule study is the most accurate analysis of the impact of soiling, and sets out a pathway to how soiling can be mitigated.
This piece provides insights into what has caused solar photovoltaic costs to fall so rapidly, such that in many parts of the world solar power plants are now more economical than coal- or gas-fired plants. This relates directly to SDG 7 (affordable & clean energy).
Contributing to SDG 13 (climate action), this rigorous study shows that renewable electricity systems could work equally well in both historical and future climates, despite changing weather patterns.
A total of 1.8–4.1 billion people are potentially exposed to heat stress due to lack of access to cooling energy systems. This study develops a comprehensive measure of energy access by introducing the dimension of space cooling. This research has direct implications for human health and wellbeing (SDG 3), and interacts with SDGs 7 (affordable and clean energy) and 11 (sustainable cities and communities).
Goal 7 sets a target to increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix by 2030. Nominated for the Elsevier Atlas Award in March 2018, this article looks at wind energy in Brazil and examines the approaches taken, such as investment coordination mechanisms, that have reduced risks enough to make wind energy a viable option.
