It is urgent to turn to the broader utilization of renewable energies instead of fossil fuels to effectively tackle this widely recognized challenge of transition to sustainable energy. The present study aims to provide insight into existing understanding and develop approaches toward advances in the working fluids, namely nanofluids, along with turbulators for enhancing heat transfer processes related to energy applications. It gives a general introduction with an overview of the existing information from the literature, then addresses outstanding issues for implementing new ideas in energy systems and solar collectors to enhance the heat transfer rate, efficiency measures, and design for the future. This visionary paper outlines the key hurdles to be conquered if such technologies significantly impact future sustainable energy systems. These are inclusively outlined as novel material development, performance enhancement, long-term stability, life cycle methodology, and cost reduction in implementing innovative technologies into large-scale industrial applications. The present work concludes with the design of a road map that integrates these advanced technologies into sustainable energy systems and identifies huge potential in these technologies to make considerable contributions towards the global transition towards renewable energy sources.