The energy-chemistry nexus: A vision of the future from sustainability perspective

The changing energy-chemistry nexus is discussed in this perspective paper about the future of sustainable energy and chemical production to identify the priorities and open issues on which focus research and development. Topics discussed regard (i) the new sustainable energy scenario, (ii) the role of energy storage (from smart grids to chemical storage of energy), (iii) the outlooks and role of solar (bio)refineries and solar fuels, (iv) how to integrate bio- and solar-refineries to move to new economy, (v) the role of methanol at the crossover of new energy-chemistry nexus, (vi) the role of chemistry in this new scenario, (vii) the role of nanomaterials for a sustainable energy, (viii) the use of nanocarbons to design advanced energy conversion and storage devices, and (ix) possibilities and routes to exploit solar energy and methane (shale gas). The contribution provides a glimpse of the emerging directions and routes with some elements about their possible role in the future scenario, but does not provide a detailed analysis of the state of the art in these directions.