Hydrogen energy is widely regarded as one of the most promising clean energy sources to address contemporary energy and environmental challenges. Hydrogen production via solar energy facilitates the decoupling of energy supply and demand, thereby mitigating the intermittency and instability inherent in solar energy utilization. In the process of solar-driven hydrogen production, a substantial portion of solar energy is inevitably dissipated as heat due to material and system limitations. Therefore, the utilization of solar thermal energy to construct photothermal-assisted solar hydrogen production systems is of paramount importance for enhancing solar energy utilization efficiency. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the latest advancements in photothermal-assisted solar hydrogen production systems, with a focus on the application of photothermal effects in diverse solar hydrogen production systems. It offers an in-depth analysis of the mechanisms by which photothermal effects enhance the process, including photothermal excitation of pyroelectric effects, suppression of hydrogen–oxygen recombination, and enhancement of polaron transport. Additionally, the paper reviews strategies for the integration of solar thermal energy into solar-coupled hydrogen production systems. Subsequently, evaluation metrics for photothermal-assisted solar hydrogen production are proposed, accompanied by a comparative analysis of various photothermal-assisted solar hydrogen production systems. Finally, the prospects and challenges of photothermal-assisted solar hydrogen production are discussed, providing a comprehensive outlook to guide future research in this field.

中文翻译：

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光热辅助太阳能制氢：综述


氢能被广泛认为是应对当代能源和环境挑战最有前途的清洁能源之一。通过太阳能制氢有利于能源供需脱钩，从而减轻太阳能利用固有的间歇性和不稳定性。在太阳能制氢过程中，由于材料和系统的限制，很大一部分太阳能不可避免地以热量的形式消散。因此，利用太阳热能构建光热辅助太阳能制氢系统对于提高太阳能利用效率至关重要。本文全面回顾了光热辅助太阳能制氢系统的最新进展，重点介绍了光热效应在各种太阳能制氢系统中的应用。它深入分析了光热效应增强该过程的机制，包括热释电效应的光热激发、氢氧复合的抑制和极化子输运的增强。此外，本文还回顾了将太阳能热能整合到太阳能耦合制氢系统中的策略。随后，提出了光热辅助太阳能制氢的评价指标，并对各种光热辅助太阳能制氢系统进行了比较分析。最后，讨论了光热辅助太阳能制氢的前景和挑战，为指导该领域的未来研究提供了全面的展望。