Plant-Inspired Innovations in Solar Energy Collection and Transformation

The primary challenges in harvesting and converting solar energy into electricity or other sustainable energy sources lie in the efficient absorption of solar radiation and the effectiveness of energy conversion. Solar cells represent a well-established category of sustainable energy conversion devices that directly transform solar radiation into electricity. These devices have been widely adopted and installed in various locations around the world.

The efficiency of solar cells has reached a limit that requires significant improvement, as more than 70% of the incoming energy is lost as waste heat. This not only reduces overall efficiency but also raises safety concerns. Inspired by trees, which efficiently transport water from the roots to the leaves through transpiration to maintain cooling and hydration, a bioinspired hybrid multigeneration photovoltaic-leaf (PV-leaf) was developed. This design enables passive water flow from a reservoir to the cell surface for evaporation, while also capturing the evaporated water and converting it into clean water (Wijerathne et al., 2025).