International Day of Clean Energy
As the world is transitioning to the enhanced use of clean energy for achieving the projected Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we are witnessing a complex interplay of many factors that are influencing the decision making at all levels; may it be Government, Industry, Academia or Thought leaders. The pace of developments, especially in the scientific and technological sector, is so enormous that it is becoming almost impossible to capture even the contours of this scenario, let alone the predictability about even a short-term picture over the next few years. The prevailing uncertainties have driven the industries and governments to the edge, having to make extremely complex technoeconomic decisions. Technology developments, economics, and international relations are intertwined in this sector like never before, forcing a balancing act between independence and interdependence for countries and people.
As a case in point, one could consider the evolving battery development scenario which is critical for the sustainable electrification of the modern world based on the clean and renewable energy. While the Li-ion batteries are dominating the electrical energy storage sector, and possibly will continue to do so for quite some time, and with the lead acid batteries still around as a mature technology for certain applications with recycling advantage, a number of new chemistries are being intensely researched around the globe. Their deployment potential would depend on the technoeconomic benefits they may deliver upon. This primarily includes Na-ion batteries which are far less dependent on the availability of critical minerals and value chains defined and controlled by international relations. Other key variants such as anode-free Li/Na batteries have also been attracting interest and attention lately.
The energy harvesting sector has also witnessed interesting advances during the past decade with the arrival of hybrid perovskite based solar cells in tandem with the traditional silicon solar cells, pushing energy conversion efficiencies past 30% with robust stability. Connecting solar energy or other forms of renewable energies with the domain of clean fuels (including green hydrogen) and value chemicals is also driving another materials innovation-driven revolution. This primarily embodies designer-catalyst development based on earth-abundant materials as well as smart and efficient system design. Batteries and green hydrogen (fuel Cells) technologies are also competing for certain application spaces driving industries into further frenzy about the choices and path forward.
A final point to make is about education and highly skilled, trained human-power development. The clean energy sector is highly innovation-driven, and hence nations and societies need people who can think differently, are hands-on, and are passionate about delivering on the sustainable development goals. The clean energy sector is buzzing with activity and we will see how it all goes.
Director of the Research Institute for Sustainable Energy, Kolkata, India. Previously, he was a Chief Scientist at the National Chemical Laboratory, Pune, India and also a Professor of Physics at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune, India. He has over 500 research publications in peer-reviewed international Journals, 10 US patents, and three co-edited books with Wiley, Springer and Elsevier. He has won many National and International Honours including the recent TWAS Prize (The World Academy of Sciences, Italy) for Physics for 2026.