The development of luminescent solar concentrator-based photomicroreactors: a cheap reactor enabling efficient solar-powered photochemistry

Sunlight strikes our planet every day with more energy than we consume in an entire year. Therefore, many researchers have explored ways to efficiently harvest and use sunlight energy for the activation of organic molecules. However, implementation of this energy source in the large-scale production of fine chemicals has been mostly neglected. The use of solar energy for chemical transformations suffers from potential drawbacks including scattering, reflections, cloud shading and poor matches between the solar emission and absorption characteristics of the photochemical reaction. In this account, we provide an overview of our efforts to overcome these issues through the development of Luminescent Solar Concentrator-based PhotoMicroreactors (LSC-PM). Such reactors can efficiently convert solar energy with a broad spectral distribution to concentrated and wavelength-shifted irradiation which matches the absorption maximum of the photocatalyst. Hence, the use of these conceptually new photomicroreactors provides an increased solar light harvesting capacity, enabling efficient solar-powered photochemistry. Graphical abstract

Thin-Film Luminescent Solar Concentrator Based on Intramolecular Charge Transfer Fluorophore and Effect of Polymer Matrix on Device Efficiency

Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) provide a transformative approach to integrating photovoltaics into a built environment. In this paper, we report thin-film LSCs composed of intramolecular charge transfer fluorophore (DACT-II) and discuss the effect of two polymers, polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), and poly (benzyl methacrylate) (PBzMA) on the performance of large-area LSCs. As observed experimentally, DACT-II with the charge-donating diphenylaminocarbazole and charge-accepting triphenyltriazine moieties shows a large Stokes shift and limited re-absorption losses in both polymers. Our results show that thin-film LSC (10 × 10 × 0.3 cm3) with optimized concentration (0.9 wt%) of DACT-II in PBzMA gives better performance than that in the PMMA matrix. In particular, optical conversion efficiency (ηopt) and power-conversion efficiency (ηPCE) of DACT-II/PBzMA LSC are 2.32% and 0.33%, respectively, almost 1.2 times higher than for DACT-II/PMMA LSC.

Wykorzystanie luminescencyjnych koncentratorów słonecznych w rozwiązaniach architektonicznych

Artykuł dotyczy charakterystyki i zastosowania luminescencyjnych koncentratorów słonecznych LSC (ang. Luminescent Solar Concentrator) w rozwiązaniach architektonicznych. Opisano metodę działania koncentratorów luminescencyjnych oraz wskazano kierunki ich zastosowania. Poruszone zostały kwestie wykorzystania luminescencyjnych koncentratorów i związane z tym możliwości rozwoju energii odnawialnej w rozwiązaniach architektonicznych. W oparciu o studium przypadku opisano wybrane projekty rozwiązań architektonicznych z użyciem technologii opartej na luminescencyjnych koncentratorach słonecznych. Efektem artykułu jest zidentyfikowanie obszarów w zakresie wykorzystania luminescencyjnych koncentratorów słonecznych w rozwiązaniach architektonicznych.

Outdoor Characterization of a Plasmonic Luminescent Solar Concentrator

Plasmonic Luminescent Solar Concentrators (PLSCs) have been shown to enhance the optical performance and power conversion efficiency of LSCs, due to added plasmonic gain in the medium. Despite the promising outlook of a PLSC through plasmonic coupling, device characterization and performance has not been verified in the real outdoor conditions, with varying direct and diffuse solar irradiation. In this work, characterization of a PLSC device of dimensions 4.5×4.5×0.3 cm 3 embedded with Lumogen Red305 dye and plasmonic gain medium of gold core silver shell nanocuboids was carried out in outdoor conditions of Dublin, Ireland. Optimized PLSC device power output at different solar insolation’s was compared to a reference photovoltaic (PV) cell and an optimized Luminescent Solar Concentrator (LSC) device. The effect of the solar discs position, solar insolation, PV cell surface temperature, diurnal, and seasonal variation on the performance of the PLSC device is studied. The key observation was that PLSC average power conversion efficiency was 1.4 times more than the PV cell in cloudy and diffuse solar conditions. The PLSC device performed 45% better than a PV cell in December than July, as December has higher diffuse solar irradiation. Even though the PLSC device absorbs only 31% and transmits 69% incident solar irradiation in the concerned visible range of 380-750 nm. The preliminary outdoor characterization on a small scale PLSC establishes its viability in a diffuse to direct solar radiation ratio throughout the year as well as establishing its benefits for integration in buildings.