Hello, solar enthusiasts!
Today, I’m excited to delve into some exciting advancements in the solar industry. Let’s talk about perovskites, a promising material that could revolutionize the world of solar panels for your home.
In the ever-evolving solar industry, perovskite solar cells are gaining attention from scientists globally. They offer the potential to convert more solar power to electricity than the widely used silicon, and that too, at a lower cost. However, the primary challenge with these cells has always been the complex production process.
Now, here’s where the exciting news comes. An international team of researchers has taken a giant leap towards commercializing perovskite solar cells! Thanks to their innovative work, they can now coat the perovskite solar cells in ambient air. This is a massive breakthrough, as until now, the coating process needed a non-reactive gas-filled chamber since perovskites react with oxygen, decreasing their performance.
This accomplishment was achieved by adding a stabilizer called dimethylammonium formate (DMAFo) to the perovskite solution before coating, which prevents materials from oxidizing. This simplifies the whole process immensely. Instead of a cumbersome setup with a nitrogen-filled box, the perovskite cells can now be prepared in normal air.
The DMAFo perovskite cells demonstrated an excellent efficiency of almost 25%, which is quite comparable to the current efficiency record for perovskite cells of 26%. What’s more, the additive has significantly improved the cells’ stability—a key characteristic for moving towards more clean and affordable energy.
Earlier, a major drawback with perovskite solar compared to silicon panels was that they degraded much faster. However, the modified perovskite cell with DMAFo showcased a retention of 90% of its efficiency even after being exposed to LED light mimicking sunlight for 700 hours. This is a considerable improvement considering the cells produced without DMAFo degraded quickly after only 300 hours.
While these exciting developments place the researchers and us on a positive trajectory, the work is far from complete. The team’s next goal? They aim to come up with tandem cells having a real-world efficiency of more than 30%. These cells need to be as stable as silicon panels for a period of 25 years.
Perovskites are indeed emerging as the next generation of solar cells. The journey that began just a decade back has now reached a stage where a perovskite cell loosely competes with silicon cells on efficiency, that took 70 years to develop!
So, if you’re considering investing in a solar array for your home or want to stay updated with the latest in the solar realm, watch this space for more on perovskite solar cells. The world of solar is changing rapidly, and we’re here to guide you through every step of this exciting journey.
Until next time, dear readers, here’s to a greener and brighter future with solar!
Original Articlehttps://pv-magazine-usa.com/2024/04/02/researchers-discover-additive-that-enhances-perovskite-coating-process/
