scholarly journals Engineering of TiO2 or ZnO—Graphene Oxide Nanoheterojunctions for Hybrid Solar Cells Devices

Photonics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 75
Author(s):  
Duarte Carreira ◽  
Paulo A. Ribeiro ◽  
Maria Raposo ◽  
Susana Sério
Keyword(s):  
Graphene Oxide ◽  
Solar Cells ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Electrical Characterization ◽  
Modern Society ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Zno Films ◽  
Layer By Layer ◽  
Glass Substrates ◽  
Rc Circuit

It is currently of huge importance to find alternatives to fossil fuels to produce clean energy and to ensure the energy demands of modern society. In the present work, two types of hybrid solar cell devices were developed and characterized. The photoactive layers of the hybrid heterojunctions comprise poly (allylamine chloride) (PAH) and graphene oxide (GO) and TiO2 or ZnO films, which were deposited using the layer-by-layer technique and DC-reactive magnetron sputtering, respectively, onto fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO)-coated glass substrates. Scanning electron microscopy evidenced a homogeneous inorganic layer, the surface morphology of which was dependent on the number of organic bilayers. The electrical characterization pointed out that FTO/(PAH/GO)50/TiO2/Al, FTO/(PAH/GO)30/ZnO/Al, and FTO/(PAH/GO)50/ZnO/Al architectures were the only ones to exhibit a diode behavior, and the last one experienced a decrease in current in a low-humidity environment. The (PAH/GO)20 impedance spectroscopy study further revealed the typical impedance of a parallel RC circuit for a dry environment, whereas in a humid environment, it approached the impedance of a series of three parallel RC circuits, indicating that water and oxygen contribute to other conduction processes. Finally, the achieved devices should be encapsulated to work successfully as solar cells.

Lawsone Sensitized ZnO Photoelectrodes for Dye Sensitized Solar Cells

2013 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 140-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shubhangi S. Khadtare ◽  
Sandesh R. Jadkar ◽  
Sunita Salunke-Gawali ◽  
Habib M. Pathan
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Dye Sensitized Solar Cells ◽  
Energy Utilization ◽  
Zno Films ◽  
Dye Sensitized ◽  
Dye Loading ◽  
Sensitized Solar Cells

Innovations in materials technology in the fields of photovoltaics play an important role in the paradigm shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. The use of solar energy is one of the most important problems in energy utilization. Dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) technology has been recognized as a competitor to the well developed thin film solar cells. In the present investigation, we have fabricated a device using natural Lawsone (Heena) dye which was used to sensitize zinc oxide (ZnO) films. ZnO seed layer was deposited using chemical bath deposition and slurry was used to deposit ZnO films followed by sintering at 450°C for 30 minutes in air. Performance of nanostructure ZnO photoelectrode using lawsone dye as a function of residence time in the dye solution was studied. For 20 hour dye loading time, we were observed power conversion efficiency around 0.5% which is more as compared to 5 and 14 hours dye loading time.

scholarly journals Renewable Power Potential from Municipal Solid Waste: A Case Study in Jiangxi, China

SAGE Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 215824402110613
Author(s):  
Rafiq Muhammad Aftab ◽  
Liguo Zhang ◽  
Chih-Chun Kung
Keyword(s):  
Power Generation ◽  
Municipal Solid Waste ◽  
Solid Waste ◽  
Energy Security ◽  
Emission Reduction ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Animal Feed ◽  
Modern Society ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Policy Implications

Development of renewable energy is important to modern society because climate change induced from fossil use has resulted in severe and possibly irreversible environmental impacts such as sea level rise, desertification, diminished land productivity, and increased possibility of extreme events. Therefore, the utilization of renewable and clean energy not only increases regional energy security but also alleviate the environmental risk. In this study, we employ the lifecycle assessment to examine the electricity generation from the use of municipal solid waste in China, and then investigate the emission reduction from this application. Different supply patterns of the wastes are also compared to make the results more robust. The results show that if recycled wastes are fully utilized, approximately 11,107 GWh can be generated, along with a profit of $1.2 billion from energy sales. In this case, the CO2 emission will reduce by 9.7 million metric tons. If the food waste is used in compositing and animal feed, the net power generation and emission reduction are about 8,216 GWh and 7.32 million metric tons, respectively. If additional 30% of recycled wastes are assumed to be utilized in their past use, the power generation, profit, and emission reduction will further decrease to 5,750 GWh, $697 million, and 5.12 metric tons, respectively. The results point out that the utilization of recycled wastes can effectively reduce the reliance on fossil fuels, improve energy security, and increase social welfare. Insights of the results and policy implications are also discussed in detail.

Preparation of CIGSS Thin-Film Solar Cells by Rapid Thermal Processing

Solar Energy ◽  
2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sachin S. Kulkarni ◽  
Jyoti S. Shirolikar ◽  
Neelkanth G. Dhere
Keyword(s):  
Thin Film ◽  
Solar Cells ◽  
Thermal Processing ◽  
Rapid Thermal Processing ◽  
Electrical Characterization ◽  
Soda Lime ◽  
Thin Film Solar Cells ◽  
Soda Lime Glass ◽  
Glass Substrates

Rapid thermal processing (RTP) provides a way to rapidly heat substrates to an elevated temperature to perform relatively short duration processes, typically less than 2–3 minutes long. RTP can be utilized to minimize the process cycle time without compromising process uniformity, thus eliminating a bottleneck in CuIn1-xGaxSe2-ySy (CIGSS) module fabrication. Some approaches have been able to realize solar cells with conversion efficiencies close or equal to those for conventionally processed solar cells with similar device structures. Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) PV Materials Lab has developed excellent facilities for the preparation of CIGSS thin-film solar cells. A RTP reactor for preparation of CIGSS thin films on 10 cm × 10 cm substrates has been designed, assembled and tested at the FSEC PV Materials Lab. This paper describes the synthesis and characterization of CIGSS thin-film solar cells by RTP technique. Materials characterization of these films was done by SEM, XEDS, XRD, AES, EPMA and electrical characterization was done by current-voltage measurements on soda lime glass substrates by RTP technique. Encouraging results were obtained during the first few experimental sets, demonstrating that reasonable solar cell efficiencies (up to 9%) can be achieved with relatively shorter cycle times, lower thermal budgets and without using toxic gases.

Recent progress in inkjet-printed solar cells

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (23) ◽  
pp. 13873-13902 ◽  
Author(s):  
Santhosh Kumar Karunakaran ◽  
Gowri Manohari Arumugam ◽  
Wentao Yang ◽  
Sijie Ge ◽  
Saqib Nawaz Khan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Recent Progress ◽  
Modern Society ◽  
The Past ◽  
Energy Demands

In the past few decades, the fabrication of solar cells has been considered as one of the most promising ways to meet the increasing energy demands to support the development of modern society as well as to control the environmental pollution caused by the combustion of fossil fuels.

scholarly journals The Influence of Oxygen Pressure on ZnO:Al Thin Films Properties Grown by Layer by Layer Growth Method at Magnetron Sputtering

2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 667-674
Author(s):  
A.I. Ievtushenko ◽  
L.O. Klochkov ◽  
O.S. Lytvyn ◽  
V.M. Tkach ◽  
O.M. Kutsay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Magnetron Sputtering ◽  
Oxygen Pressure ◽  
Traditional Approach ◽  
Visible Spectrum ◽  
Layer Growth ◽  
Zno Films ◽  
Layer By Layer ◽  
Deposition Chamber ◽  
Glass Substrates ◽  
Growth Method

The influence of oxygen pressure in the deposition chamber on the structure, morphology, optical and electrical properties of aluminum doped ZnO films deposited by a layer by layer growth method in magnetron sputtering on glass substrates was studied. The effect of the application of the traditional one-step approach and our proposed layer by layer growth method in magnetron sputtering on the properties of doped by aluminum ZnO films was analyzed. It is found that with decreasing oxygen pressure in the deposition chamber improves the structure, increases transmittance in the visible spectrum of radiation and decreases resistivity of ZnO:Al films. It is shown that the application of layer by layer growth method in magnetron sputtering allows to grow the transparent conductive ZnO:Al films with higher performance parameters, compared with the films which condensed by traditional approach in magnetron sputtering. The layer by layer growth method allows to grown ZnO:Al films with electrical resistance at 6.1·10-4 Ohm·cm and transmission in the visible light of 95%, which is promising for their aplication in photovoltaic devices.

Fabrication of layer-by-layer graphene oxide thin film on copper substrate by electrophoretic deposition

2020 ◽  
Vol 59 (12) ◽  
pp. 125001
Author(s):  
Nan Ye ◽  
Satoka Ohnishi ◽  
Mitsuhiro Okada ◽  
Kazuto Hatakeyama ◽  
Kazuhiko Seki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thin Film ◽  
Graphene Oxide ◽  
Electrophoretic Deposition ◽  
Copper Substrate ◽  
Oxide Thin Film ◽  
Layer By Layer ◽  
Layer Graphene
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