High-efficiency solar heat storage enabled by adaptive radiation management

Solar heat storage technology is urgently needed to harness intermittent solar energy to directly drive widespread heat-related applications. However, achieving high-efficiency solar heat storage remains elusive due to the loss of heat to the surroundings, especially through radiative processes. Here, we present a bioinspired light-adaptive shutter (LAS) with a multi-layer architecture that autonomously switches between open and closed states according to solar illumination fluctuations because of a photothermal-expansion mismatch effect. As a result, in a LAS-integrated solar heat storage system, the LAS governs the incident and dissipated radiation, suppresses the radiative heat dissipation by 20 times, and achieves high-efficiency solar heat storage with a near-zero net radiative heat dissipation. Furthermore, a LAS is demonstrated to enhance the temperature by >20°C in a 3-day field test. Given excellent responsiveness, scalable manufacturing, and feasibility under wide operating conditions, the LAS provides a promising radiation management strategy for high-efficiency solar heat storage.