Science Daily March 22, 2024 The efficiency of p–i–n perovskite solar cells fabricated in air still lags behind those made in an inert atmosphere. An international team of researchers (China, USA-University of Colorado) introduced an ionic pair stabilizer, dimethylammonium formate (DMAFo), into the perovskite precursor solution to prevent the degradation of perovskite precursors. It inhibited the oxidization of iodide ions and deprotonation of organic cations, improved the crystallinity and reduced defects in the resulting perovskite films. They showed the generation of additional p-type defects during ambient air fabrication that suggested the need for improving bulk properties of the perovskite film […]
Tag Archives: Renewable energy
Tests show high-temperature superconducting magnets are ready for fusion
MIT News March 4, 2024 The SPARC Toroidal Field Model Coil (TFMC) Program was a three-year effort between 2018 and 2021 that developed novel rare earth barium copper oxide (REBCO) superconductor technologies and then successfully utilized these technologies to design, build, and test a first-in-class, high-field (∼20 T), representative-scale (∼3 m) superconducting toroidal field (TF) coil. The program was executed jointly by the MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC) and Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) as a technology enabler of the superconducting high-field pathway to fusion energy, and as a risk retirement program for the no insulation (NI) TF magnet […]
New water batteries stay cool under pressure
Science Daily February 21, 2024 The sluggish ions-transfer and inhomogeneous ions-nucleation induce the formation of randomly oriented dendrites on Zn anode, while the chemical instability at anode–electrolyte interface triggers detrimental side reactions. A team of international researchers (Australia, China) designed a multifunctional hybrid interphase of Bi/Bi2O3 a novel synergistic regulation mechanism involving chemically inert interface protection mechanism suppressing side reactions, and thermodynamically favorable Zn atomic clusters dissociation mechanism impeding dendrites formation. Assisted by collaborative modulation behavior, the Zn@Bi/Bi2O3 symmetry cell delivered an ultrahigh cumulative plating capacity and ultralong lifetimes of 300 h even at high current density and depth of […]
Researchers develop world’s most efficient quantum dot solar cell
Nanowerk February 21, 2024 Research has predominantly focused on inorganic cation perovskite-based colloidal quantum dots (PQDs) even though organic cation PQDs have more favorable bandgaps. Researchers in South Korea developed solar cells using narrow bandgap organic cation based PQDs and demonstrated substantially higher efficiency compared with their inorganic counterparts. They employed an alkyl ammonium iodide-based ligand exchange strategy, which proved to be substantially more efficient in replacing the long-chain oleyl ligands than conventional methyl acetate-based ligand exchange while stabilizing the α phase of organic PQDs in ambient conditions. They showed a solar cell with the organic cation PQDs with high […]
More power from waste heat
Nanowerk April 29, 2023 An international team of researchers (Germany, USA – Northwestern University) studied an alloy of niobium, iron and antimony that converts waste heat into electricity at temperatures ranging from about 70 to more than 700 degrees Celsius with an efficiency of eight percent. To further increase the efficiency of the thermoelectric made of niobium, iron and antimony, the researchers focused on its microstructure. As grain boundaries reduce both the thermal and electrical conductivity of the material, for the highest possible efficiency, the thermal conductivity should be as low as possible so that the heat in the material […]
Silver nanoparticles spark key advance in thermoelectricity for power generation
Nanowerk May 1, 2023 To facilitate the development of thermoelectric modules for various operating temperature ranges, a connection technology that is suitable for heat-sensitive thermoelectric materials and capable of realizing both low-temperature connections and high-temperature service is required. Researchers at the University of Houston used low-temperature sintering of silver nanoparticles as an approach to connect the electrode and metallization layer of low- (Bi2Te3-based), medium- (PbTe-based) and high-temperature (half-Heusler-based) thermoelectric modules. Due to the low melting point of Ag nanoparticles and the high stability in the sintered bulk, the processing temperature of the module was decoupled from the operating temperature, avoiding […]
Synthesis gas and battery power from sunlight energy
Science Daily March 21, 2023 Parallel sunlight-driven catalytic conversion of CO2 and protons to syngas is a key step toward a sustainable energy cycle. State-of-the-art catalytic systems and materials often fall short as application-oriented concurrent CO and H2 evolution requires challenging reaction conditions which can hamper stability, selectivity, and efficiency. Researchers in Germany engineered a light-harvesting metal-organic framework hosting two molecular catalysts to yield colloidal, water-stable, versatile nanoreactors for photocatalytic syngas generation with highly controllable product ratios. In-depth fluorescence, X-ray, and microscopic studies paired with kinetic analysis show that the host delivers energy efficiently to active sites, conceptually yielding nanozymes. […]
Team develops strategy to regulate light absorption behaviors of titanium oxo clusters
Phys.org January 23, 2023 Researchers in China constructed two heterometallic clusters to improve the solar absorption and performance of titanium oxo clusters. Their studies indicated that these structures exhibited enhanced visible-light absorption and significantly reduced optical band gaps which could be mainly attributed to the introduction of electron-rich molybdenum (Mo) pairs as heterometals. They found that the electron-rich Mo–Mo pairs could be introduced to titanium oxo clusters to enhance visible-light absorption. They attributed the reduction in the band gaps to the introduction of electron-rich Mo-Mo pairs as heterometals. They also found that the bands shift effectively toward the visible-light region. […]
Self-repairing healing solar cells recovering in the dark of the night
Nanowerk January 4, 2023 Perovskite solar cells degrade when exposed to sunlight, which results in decreasing performance over time. An international team of researchers (Sweden, Israel) demonstrated that metal halide perovskite solar cells, which degrade in sunlight, can rebuild their efficiency at night, when it’s dark. They exposed single crystals of lead-based metal halide perovskites to powerful lasers, which made them lose their ability to glow. However, they found that the material regained its photoluminescence following some recuperation time in darkness. They observed this in a solar cell’s thin, multicrystalline layer and the other one in single crystals. It is […]
Paper-thin solar cell can turn any surface into a power source (w/video)
Nanowerk December 10, 2022 To date, demonstrations of ultra-thin photovoltaics have been limited to small-scale devices, often prepared on glass carrier substrates with only a few layers solution-processed. Researchers at MIT have demonstrated large-area, ultra-thin organic photovoltaic (PV) modules produced with scalable solution-based printing processes for all layers. They were transferred onto lightweight and high-strength composite fabrics, resulting in durable fabric-PV systems ∼50 microns thin, weighing under 1 gram over the module are, and having a specific power of 370 W kg−1. Integration of the ultra-thin modules onto composite fabrics lends mechanical resilience to allow the fabric-PV systems to maintain […]