Alternative energy technologies are greatly hindered by significant limitations in materials science. From low activity to poor stability, and from mineral scarcity to high cost, the current materials are not able to cope with the significant challenges of clean energy technologies. However, recent advances in the preparation of nanomaterials, porous solids, and nanostructured solids are providing hope in the race for a better, cleaner energy production. The present contribution critically reviews the development and role of mesoporosity in a wide range of technologies, as this provides for critical improvements in accessibility, the dispersion of the active phase and a higher surface area. Relevant examples of the development of mesoporosity by a wide range of techniques are provided, including the preparation of hierarchical structures with pore systems in different scale ranges. Mesoporosity plays a significant role in catalysis, especially in the most challenging processes where bulky molecules, like those obtained from biomass or highly unreactive species, such as CO2 should be transformed into most valuable products. Furthermore, mesoporous materials also play a significant role as electrodes in fuel and solar cells and in thermoelectric devices, technologies which are benefiting from improved accessibility and a better dispersion of materials with controlled porosity.

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The development of intracrystalline mesoporosity within zeolites has been a long-standing goal in catalysis as it greatly contributes to alleviating the diffusion limitations of these widely used microporous materials. The combination of in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction and liquid-cell transmission electron microscopy enabled the first in situ observation of the development of intracrystalline mesoporosity in zeolites and provided structural and kinetic information on the changes produced in zeolites to accommodate the mesoporosity. The interpretation of the time-resolved diffractograms together with computational simulations evidenced the formation of short-range hexagonally ordered mesoporosity within the zeolite framework, and the in situ electron microscopy studies allowed the direct observation of structural changes in the zeolite during the process. The evidence for the templating and protective role of the surfactant and the rearrangement of the zeolite crystal to accommodate intracrystalline mesoporosity opens new and exciting opportunities for the production of tailored hierarchical zeolites.

Novel epoxy-based blends containing 30 wt % star styrene-b-butadiene block copolymers epoxidized at several degrees (SepB) have been investigated in order to analyze the effect of epoxidation degree on the ability of these copolymers to produce nanostructures inside the epoxy matrix as well as their effect on the network structure of the matrix. For neat styrene−butadiene (SB) and SepB15-modified systems, macroscopic phase separation was observed. The SepB epoxidized at 40−76 mol %, however, yielded hexagonally ordered nanostructures formed by PS cylinders arranged in the matrix containing also the epoxidized and nonepoxidized butadiene units. DSC analysis indicates that the slight differences observed in self-assembling of the mixture containing the 40 wt % epoxidized block copolymer with respect to those for the blends with higher epoxidation degrees could be related with reactivity differences of the epoxidized copolymers with the curing agent. It is envisaged that these novel nanostructured blends may lead to novel materials with excellent optical properties and enhanced fracture toughness.