Hierarchical Assembly of Carbon Dots with Full‐Solar‐Spectrum Absorption for Solar Energy Applications

Abstract Carbon dots (CDs) featuring low‐cost, non‐toxic, and appealing optical properties demonstrate promising applications in energy, e.g. solar energy capture and conversion. However, it remains a significant challenge to expand the absorption bands of CDs from visible to near‐infrared (NIR) spe...

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Main Authors: Lei Li, Di Li, Yanfei Qu, Ruoyu Zhang, Shuo Qi, Mengyao Liu, Haohao Bi, Tao Jia, Songnan Qu, Weitao Zheng
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2025-05-01
Series:Advanced Science
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202417457
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author Lei Li
Di Li
Yanfei Qu
Ruoyu Zhang
Shuo Qi
Mengyao Liu
Haohao Bi
Tao Jia
Songnan Qu
Weitao Zheng
author_facet Lei Li
Di Li
Yanfei Qu
Ruoyu Zhang
Shuo Qi
Mengyao Liu
Haohao Bi
Tao Jia
Songnan Qu
Weitao Zheng
author_sort Lei Li
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Carbon dots (CDs) featuring low‐cost, non‐toxic, and appealing optical properties demonstrate promising applications in energy, e.g. solar energy capture and conversion. However, it remains a significant challenge to expand the absorption bands of CDs from visible to near‐infrared (NIR) spectral regions to harness the entire spectrum of sunlight for efficient solar energy utilization. Herein, hierarchical assemblies of CDs (HA‐CDs) are constructed by stepwise assembling monodispersed ultraviolet‐absorbing CDs to water‐soluble visible‐NIR absorbing supra‐CDs (PA‐CDs), and then complexing PA‐CDs with Fe3+ ions to form 3D porous architectures (HA‐CDs) with full solar spectrum absorption and good water resistance. Notably, the HA‐CDs exhibit good hydrophilicity and superior photothermal conversion efficiency of 84% under simulated solar irradiation. The facile Fe3+ ion cross‐linking assembly property enables the in situ preparation of HA‐CDs on various fabric substrates, resulting in low‐cost, high‐performance photothermal conversion products. High‐performance 2D solar‐driven interfacial water evaporation, electricity generation, and water‐electricity cogeneration have been demonstrated in the HA‐CDs in situ coated fabric (HA‐CDs‐fabric). This study provides a novel and effective design approach for the development of high‐performance CD‐based photothermal materials for solar energy applications.
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issn 2198-3844
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spelling doaj-art-19786b51fb1f489ab09cff85d1109c4b2025-08-20T02:34:47ZengWileyAdvanced Science2198-38442025-05-011218n/an/a10.1002/advs.202417457Hierarchical Assembly of Carbon Dots with Full‐Solar‐Spectrum Absorption for Solar Energy ApplicationsLei Li0Di Li1Yanfei Qu2Ruoyu Zhang3Shuo Qi4Mengyao Liu5Haohao Bi6Tao Jia7Songnan Qu8Weitao Zheng9Key Laboratory of Automobile Materials College of Materials Science and Engineering Jilin University Changchun 130012 P. R. ChinaKey Laboratory of Automobile Materials College of Materials Science and Engineering Jilin University Changchun 130012 P. R. ChinaKey Laboratory of Automobile Materials College of Materials Science and Engineering Jilin University Changchun 130012 P. R. ChinaKey Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology Ministry of Education Engineering Research Center of Forest Bio‐Preparation College of Chemistry Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization Northeast Forestry University Harbin 150040 P. R. ChinaKey Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology Ministry of Education Engineering Research Center of Forest Bio‐Preparation College of Chemistry Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization Northeast Forestry University Harbin 150040 P. R. ChinaKey Laboratory of Automobile Materials College of Materials Science and Engineering Jilin University Changchun 130012 P. R. ChinaKey Laboratory of Automobile Materials College of Materials Science and Engineering Jilin University Changchun 130012 P. R. ChinaKey Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology Ministry of Education Engineering Research Center of Forest Bio‐Preparation College of Chemistry Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization Northeast Forestry University Harbin 150040 P. R. ChinaJoint Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education Institute of Applied Physics and Materials Engineering University of Macau Avenida da Universidade, Taipa Macau SAR 999078 P. R. ChinaKey Laboratory of Automobile Materials College of Materials Science and Engineering Jilin University Changchun 130012 P. R. ChinaAbstract Carbon dots (CDs) featuring low‐cost, non‐toxic, and appealing optical properties demonstrate promising applications in energy, e.g. solar energy capture and conversion. However, it remains a significant challenge to expand the absorption bands of CDs from visible to near‐infrared (NIR) spectral regions to harness the entire spectrum of sunlight for efficient solar energy utilization. Herein, hierarchical assemblies of CDs (HA‐CDs) are constructed by stepwise assembling monodispersed ultraviolet‐absorbing CDs to water‐soluble visible‐NIR absorbing supra‐CDs (PA‐CDs), and then complexing PA‐CDs with Fe3+ ions to form 3D porous architectures (HA‐CDs) with full solar spectrum absorption and good water resistance. Notably, the HA‐CDs exhibit good hydrophilicity and superior photothermal conversion efficiency of 84% under simulated solar irradiation. The facile Fe3+ ion cross‐linking assembly property enables the in situ preparation of HA‐CDs on various fabric substrates, resulting in low‐cost, high‐performance photothermal conversion products. High‐performance 2D solar‐driven interfacial water evaporation, electricity generation, and water‐electricity cogeneration have been demonstrated in the HA‐CDs in situ coated fabric (HA‐CDs‐fabric). This study provides a novel and effective design approach for the development of high‐performance CD‐based photothermal materials for solar energy applications.https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202417457assemblycarbon dotsfull‐solar‐spectrum absorptionhierarchical assemblyphotothermal conversion
spellingShingle Lei Li
Di Li
Yanfei Qu
Ruoyu Zhang
Shuo Qi
Mengyao Liu
Haohao Bi
Tao Jia
Songnan Qu
Weitao Zheng
Hierarchical Assembly of Carbon Dots with Full‐Solar‐Spectrum Absorption for Solar Energy Applications
Advanced Science
assembly
carbon dots
full‐solar‐spectrum absorption
hierarchical assembly
photothermal conversion
title Hierarchical Assembly of Carbon Dots with Full‐Solar‐Spectrum Absorption for Solar Energy Applications
title_full Hierarchical Assembly of Carbon Dots with Full‐Solar‐Spectrum Absorption for Solar Energy Applications
title_fullStr Hierarchical Assembly of Carbon Dots with Full‐Solar‐Spectrum Absorption for Solar Energy Applications
title_full_unstemmed Hierarchical Assembly of Carbon Dots with Full‐Solar‐Spectrum Absorption for Solar Energy Applications
title_short Hierarchical Assembly of Carbon Dots with Full‐Solar‐Spectrum Absorption for Solar Energy Applications
title_sort hierarchical assembly of carbon dots with full solar spectrum absorption for solar energy applications
topic assembly
carbon dots
full‐solar‐spectrum absorption
hierarchical assembly
photothermal conversion
url https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202417457
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