CHAPTER 12: Nanostructured Energy Materials: From Organic Photovoltaic to Hybrid Thermoelectrics

Organic photovoltaic, supercapacitors, photocatalysis, batteries, fuel cells, and thermoelectrics are active research fields in the global quest to harvest, store, and recover green and sustainable energy forms. This chapter discusses the importance of nanostructured materials and soft matter for the development of related energy materials. Selected publications are utilized to comprehensively link behavior of soft matter under confinement and at interfaces to relevant properties and performance of envisioned systems. It highlights structural properties of functionalized polymers upon confinement and nanostructuring in organic solar cells. Microporous carbon is presented as substrate for supercapacitors that affect ion diffusion whereas, porous substrates naturally emerge as electrodes in photoelectrochemical cells and batteries. Fuel cell efficiency is related to processes at the triple-phase boundary, and in the field of thermoelectrics, a glimpse on just evolving hybrid systems consisting of nanostructured semiconductors and conducting polymer blends is provided.