Energy breakthrough uses sun to create solar energy materials
CORVALLIS, Ore. – In a recent advance in solar energy, researchers have discovered a way to tap the sun not only as a source of power. Additionally, they can directly produce the solar energy materials that make this possible. This breakthrough highlights the importance of optimising the solar energy material process. It is crucial for increasing efficiency and sustainability.
Reduce Cost of Solar Energy through the material process
This breakthrough by chemical engineers at Oregon State University could soon reduce the cost of solar energy and speed production processes. Additionally, they could also use environmentally benign materials. Furthermore, the sun could become almost a “one-stop shop” that produces both the materials for solar devices. It could also provide the eternal energy to power them.
The findings just appeared in RSC Advances, a journal of the Royal Society of Chemistry. This work received support from the National Science Foundation.
“This approach should work and is very environmentally conscious,” said Chih-Hung Chang, a professor of chemical engineering at Oregon State University, and lead author on the study.
“Several aspects of this system should continue to reduce the cost of solar energy, and when widely used, our carbon footprint,” Chang said. “It could produce solar energy materials anywhere there’s an adequate solar resource, and in this chemical manufacturing process, there would be zero energy impact.”
Nanoparticle Ink Produces Solar in that material process
The work is based on the use of a “continuous flow” microreactor to produce nanoparticle inks that make solar cells by printing. Existing approaches are based mostly on batch operations. These approaches are more time-consuming and costly.
In this process, simulated sunlight focuses on the solar microreactor. This action rapidly heats the reactor. At the same time, it allows for precise temperature control. This control improves the quality of the finished product. The light in these experiments comes from artificial sources. However, you can use direct sunlight instead. Moreover, this method could reduce costs significantly compared to current approaches.
Less time to produce Solar Energy
“Our system can synthesize solar energy materials in minutes compared to other processes that might take 30 minutes to two hours,” Chang said. “This gain in operation speed can lower cost.”
In these experiments, researchers made solar materials with copper indium diselenide. However, to lower material costs, they might also use a compound like copper zinc tin sulfide, Chang said. They could use sunlight to create molten salts. Later, these could serve as an energy source for manufacturing. This process would allow for precise control over the processing temperature needed to create solar energy materials.
State-of-the-art chalcogenide-based, thin film solar cells have already reached a fairly high solar energy conversion efficiency of about 20 percent in the laboratory, researchers said. These cells also cost less than silicon technology. Further improvements in efficiency should be possible, they said.
Advantages of thin-film solar energy
Another advantage of these thin-film approaches to solar energy is that the solar absorbing layers are, in fact, very thin – about 1-2 microns. In contrast, the layers in more conventional silicon cells are 50-100 microns. This significant difference in thickness not only reduces the materials needed for production, thereby potentially lowering costs, but also opens up innovative avenues for integrating solar technology in diverse environments. The thinner layers could ease the incorporation of solar energy into structures, facilitating applications that were previously considered impractical. For example, it’s done by coating thin films onto windows, roof shingles, or other possibilities, allowing architects and builders to seamlessly integrate solar solutions into their designs without compromising aesthetics or functionality. Furthermore, this versatility promotes the development of multifunctional surfaces, where energy generation can coincide with everyday materials, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable future.
Additional support for this work was provided by the Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnologies Institute, or ONAMI. Support was also provided by the Oregon Built Environment and Sustainable Technologies Center, or Oregon BEST.
Source:
OSU College of Engineering: The OSU College of Engineering, This research was supported by grant number CBET-1105061 from the National Science Foundation., 4-3-14
By David Stauth
