A review on recent developments in solar photoreactors for carbon dioxide conversion to fuels

[Display omitted] •The general solar-driven CO2 conversion methods based on fuel generation are investigated.•The developments in solar photoreactors for CO2 reduction and fuel production are reviewed.•The possible mechanism for solar photoreduction of CO2 to fuel formation is summarized.•The effect of parameters on the performance of solar photoreactors is evaluated.•A better reactor configuration is suggested in the solar-reduction of CO2 to fuels, energy storage. Energy security, as well as global climate change, are the two interlinked concerns that demands attention. Solar-assisted CO2 conversion potentially alleviates these problem by providing an efficient mode for storing energy. Among the several available methods, solar assisted phototechnology is notably an effective approach, as it takes a small amount of input energy and operates at low temperatures. This review includes a comprehensive study on the development of solar photoreactors to maximize yield for fuel production during carbon dioxide reduction. In the main stream, the general solar-driven carbon dioxide conversion methods are investigated to determine the suitable methodology for solar photoreduction of CO2 to methanol. The various photoreactors employed for solar photoreduction of carbon dioxide are evaluated and a comparative analysis is performed on different aspects of catalyst type, irradiation time, irradiated area, light intensity, and yield of methanol. Finally, the effect of parameters on the performance of solar-photoreactor is also accessed. The conclusions and future perspectives are presented which will open new path for further advances in the implementation of hybrid solar photoreactors to enhance the efficiency of CO2 photoreduction to fuel.