Ultra-stable perovskite-based solar cells with a protective adhesive. Free Technical Library News

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Ultra-stable perovskite-based solar cells with protective adhesive

05.06.2023

Silicon solar cells may have had a few decades of head start, but Perovsk is rapidly closing the gap in just 15 years. Not only does its efficiency approach that of silicon, it's also cheaper, lighter, and more flexible, but it has one major drawback - durability.

Over prolonged exposure to the elements, perovskites tend to break down, which in turn is not good for devices designed to be exposed to the sun all day, every day for decades. Scientists have experimented with amplifying them by adding bulk molecules, 2D additives, carbon nanodots from hair, or quantum dots, among other things. But the new treatment allows perovskite solar cells to operate at 99% efficiency after 1000 hours of use.

The team used a new adhesive to protect the perovskites. It is called BondLynx and was originally produced by Canadian materials company XlynX for other uses before being tested on solar cells.

Problems with perovskites begin when the organic components in the material are activated by heat and light and can disappear, weakening the perovskite and damaging other materials in the solar cell. BondLynx is a "cross-linking" agent that forms chemical covalent bonds with these organic components, preventing them from loosening and reducing effectiveness.

The team processed perovskite solar cells with BondLynx and then exposed them to prolonged exposure to heat and light to see how well they performed compared to untreated solar cells. The solar cells started at 24% efficiency and maintained about 99% efficiency after 1000 hours of continuous exposure to artificial sunlight. By comparison, untreated solar cells lost 35% of their initial efficiency under the same conditions over the same time period.

The solar cells were also subjected to continuous exposure to 60°C (140°F) heat for 600 hours. The treated BondLynx managed to retain almost 98% of their potency during this time, while the control group lost 27% of their potency.

Although the trials were only a few months old, the fact that the treated cells barely lost their effectiveness suggests they should live much longer. Along with another recent coating that is estimated to give solar cells a 30-year lifespan, this bold new challenger could patch up its Achilles heel and soon challenge silicon for solar supremacy.

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