Role of Electroceramics in Renewable Energy Technologies

The global warming has become one of the major concerns of today’s era, carbon dioxide emissions being the largest contributors amongst all. The technologies employing use of renewable resources viz. sun, water, wind etc. can play a vital role in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. In order to circumvent the usage of fossil fuels, which is still the major source for power generation and is amongst the largest CO2-emitting sectors, it is essential to integrate the technologies associated with energy-harvesting and energy storage devices. These devices with high energy/power density play a significant role in transport electrification and portable electronics. The conventional dielectric capacitors have garnered larger interest due to higher power density and their faster charge–discharge speed making them suitable for pulsed power applications. The smaller remanent and larger maximum polarization with high electric breakdown strength of dielectric ceramics are the keys to its high energy density. The higher values of dielectric breakdown temperature of electroceramics than its counterparts make them feasible alternative for high-temperature applications. In this chapter, an overview of the role of electroceramics, the historical evolutions and future projections in the renewable energy technology sector have been discussed. A brief description on different types of ceramics, the principles of energy storage in electroceramics and the strategies for enhancement of energy storage properties is presented for more understanding.