Researchers in Europe are investigating semi-transparent solar windows, where microfabration technology is applied to both CIGS and PEROVSKIET devices, to overcome the display properties of earlier concepts for the solar window.
A European team is investigating a new type of thin film Solar PV window that depends on microfabration techniques to overcome the display-impledige opacity and unwanted colors of earlier solar window designs. The goal is a new building integrated PV (BIPV) technology that can be used in every building as glass windows and glass facade tiles.
In a three-year project of € 1.08 million ($ 1.27 million), the team is investigating glass cells on glass using Micro-Striped Solar cells using copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS) and Halide perovskiet thin films. Recognizing that these technologies have a power conversion efficiency of more than 20% in the opaque form, is the purpose of the researchers for semi-transparent PV-mini modules with an efficiency of 8% in 50% transparency.
Solar windows are intended to combine three functions: as building materials they transfer sunlight to the building; As current generators, they convert solar energy into electricity; And as thermal regulators, they block infrared radiation, reducing unwanted heating, according to Pedro Anacleto, send coordinator project at the International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL) in Portugal.
“Current STPV solutions that harvest energy from the visible spectrum are either display or have an inherent color, making them unattractive for the integration of buildings,” Anacleto said PV Magazine, Adding low performance and unpleasant colors as extra acceptance barriers.
The challenges for the team are how they can achieve color -neutral transparency without sacrificing performance, and to ensure that “films with full thickness to maximize the ability and aesthetics.”
The proposed solution is micro-striped thin films, long and narrow solar cell lines, separated by transparent open glass openings to make the PV material at a certain distance “not to be distinguished for the human eye”. Such a design offers control over visible light transmission (AVT) and efficiency by varying the distance from the lines, according to the researchers.
The CIGS version focuses on a device of 5 cm x 5 cm while the halide -perovskiet version focuses on a 10 cm x 10 cm device. The microstructured CIGS on glass are formed using photolithography to define the pattern of micro lines, sputtering and lift-off techniques, while the perovskiet material is printed with ablation to form the micro lines.
Despite the fact that the project has a technology division level 5 (TRL 5), all manufacturing methods were selected because they are scalable and compatible with industrial processes. The TRL measures the maturity of technological components for a system and is based on a scale of one to nine, with nine that represent adult technologies, ready for full commercial application.
“The manufacture of these PV devices is the same as for regular opaque CIGS and Perovskiet solar cells, apart from the extra manufacturing steps that are needed to make them semi-transparent. These are standard manufacturing processes used in the semiconductor industry, so the equipment is available,” said Anacieto.
The project, dubbed shipping, includes a life cycle analysis (LCA). It runs from December 2023 to December 2026. It is financed under the European Clean Energy Transition Partnership (CETP).
Other organizations participating in the transmission project include the National Interuiversity Consortium of Materials Science and Technology (Instm), University of Genova and University of Rome Tor Vergata, all based in Italy, together with the University of Cyprus, Hungary-based Bay Zoltán Nonprofit. For applied research and Turkey’s Odtüs-Güernam research research and applications, part of Middle Eastern).
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