Photovoltaic cells could be cheaper. Today's long production processes can be made cheaper and faster with the new spray technique, developed by a team of scientists from the University of Sheffield. But the secret is perovskite
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Le Photovoltaic cells they may be cheaper. Today's long production processes and larger devices can be made cheaper and faster with the new one spray technique, developed by a team of scientists from the University of Sheffield. But the secret is there perovskite.
Experts from the Department of Physics together with those from the University's Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering have already used the spray method for the production of photovoltaic cells with organic semiconductors, but this time they used the perovskite, which allowed them to take an important step forward.
Already known since 2012 and applied to the energy sector, it is now considered a very promising material for photovoltaic cells, given that combines high efficiency with low material costs.
What scientists created it is a cell with structures similar to organic ones. "What we did was replace the light-absorbing layer - the organic layer - with one coated with a perovskite spray paint."
According to the scientists, the maximum efficiency of the device correlates with the creation of dense films having a surface coverage greater than 85%. The results obtained have shown that the spray coating can be used on large surfaces, guaranteeing a significant reduction in production costs.
In fact, most solar cells are made with energy-intensive materials such as silicon. But those based on perovskites require much less energy to produce. All the more so if this material is applied by spray. “Perovskite cells today have yields of up to 19 percent. This figure is not so far from that of silicon at 25 percent, the material that dominates the world solar market ", he said the professor. David Lidzey.
However, more work needs to be done to improve them and make them competitive, given that the cells created with sprayed perovskite by the Sheffield team so far reach 11% efficiency.
A significant step towards efficient and low-cost photovoltaic cells: “I believe that new technologies based on thin-film photovoltaics are about to play an important role in the field of solar energy, but cells with perovskite are emerging as probable rivals of those. thin film ".
A tough fight that can only bring benefits to the clean energy sector.
Francesca Mancuso
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