Tag Archives: Silvia Licoccia

Perovskite, nanorods, and solar energy

As the authors, Azhar Fakharuddin, Rajan Jose, and Thomas Brown, note in an Aug. 7, 2015 Nanowerk Spotlight article , securing energy sources is a global pursuit and pervoskite (a new wonder material for solar cells) has presented a challenge (Note: A link has been removed),

Energy security has been a top global concern motivating researchers to seek it from renewable and cost-effective resources. Solar cells, that convert sun light into electricity, hold the promise as a cheap energy alternative. The silicon and thin film photovoltaic industry have taken many strides to lower energy prices; however, continued research is required in order to extensively compete with fossil fuels.

The development of perovskite solar cells, first reported in 2009 (and with a record power conversion efficiency of 20.1 percent so far), is a possible route towards high efficiency photovoltaics that are also cost-effectiveness, owing to to their easy-processing from solution.

Question marks have however remained on their stability.

The authors (members of a research team) have recently published a paper about a method that could make perovskite solar cells more stable,

Now, a research team from University Malaysia Pahang, focussing on renewable energy, working in in collaboration with scientists from University of Rome ‘Tor Vergata’, Italy, has developed the world’s first nanorod-based perovskite solar module.

Among the three types of electron transport layers investigated, the nanorod-based devices retained the original efficiency values even after 2500 hours of shelf-life investigation, a protocol used to gauge initial stability and indoor lifetime performance.
The device employing a conventional TiO2 nanoparticle material showed nearly 60% of original performance, whereas planar devices employing a compact TiO2 layer showed below 5% of original performance, measured at similar experimental conditions.
A chemical analysis of the devices hinted that the peculiar conformation of nanorods facilitates a stable perovskite phase due to their inherent stability and macroporous nature.

If you want more detail, the research team’s Nanowerk Spotlight article is the place to look (it’s almost like a Reddit session except there’s no ‘ask me anything’ option). There’s also the team’s paper,

Vertical TiO2 Nanorods as a Medium for Stable and High-Efficiency Perovskite Solar Modules by Azhar Fakharuddin, Francesco Di Giacomo, Alessandro L. Palma, Fabio Matteocci, Irfan Ahmed, Stefano Razza, Alessandra D’Epifanio, Silvia Licoccia, Jamil Ismail, Aldo Di Carlo, Thomas M. Brown, and Rajan Jose. ACS Nano, Article ASAP DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.5b03265 Publication Date (Web): July 24, 2015

Copyright © 2015 American Chemical Society

This paper is behind a paywall.

One final note, I’ve been meaning to publish a post about perovskite-based solar cells for a while now as the material seems to be sweeping the solar energy community and, now, it’s done.