Large-scale (6000 cm 2 ) dye solar cell modules were developed using a meander and integrated series connection design in combination with a glass frit-sealing technique. The manufacturing process, as developed at Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) for glass frit-sealed dye solar cell modules, is based entirely on screen printing and does not require the interconnection of sub-modules. With the same technique and appropriate quality control, a good reproducibility on smaller-scaled modules (10 Â 10 cm²) is already achieved and a solar efficiency of 7.1% on the active area has been reached, resulting in 5.3% efficiency on total aperture area. The scope of the recent work is to prove that the manufacturing concept is up-scalable to attractive areas for the building-integrated photovoltaic market. For the size of 60 Â 100 cm² to be reached, it was necessary to transfer each process step into an industrial environment. Additionally, a half-automated station for coloring and electrolyte filling made out of standard parts was constructed, which forms the basis for the final processing steps. Additional functions (processes and quality control) to ensure the long-term stability are integrated into the station. First operating module prototypes have been manufactured with this equipment. Different processing steps and the electrical characterization of these first 60 Â 100 cm 2 prototypes are presented along with an overview of the advantages of this module concept in terms of cost effective up-scaling and transfer to industrial production.
Recently, the first commercial dye solar cell (DSC) products based on the mesoscopic principle were successfully launched. Introduction to the market has been accompanied by a strong increase in patent applications in the field during the last four years, which is a good indication of further commercialization activity. Materials and cell concepts have been developed to such extent that easy uptake by industrial manufacturers is possible. The critical phase for broad market acceptance has therefore been reached, which implies focusing on standardization-related research topics. In parallel the number of scientific publications on DSC is growing further (>3500 since 2012), and the range of new or renewed fundamental topics is broadening. A recent example is the introduction of the perovskite mesoscopic cell, for which an efficiency of 14.1% has been certified. Thus, a growing divergence between market introduction and research could be the consequence. Herein, an attempt is made to show that such an unwanted divergence can be prevented, for example, by developing suitable reference-type cell and module concepts as well as manufacturing routes. An in situ cell manufacturing concept that can be applied to mesoscopic-based solar cells in a broader sense is proposed. As a guideline for future module concepts, recent results for large-area, glass-frit-sealed DSC modules from efficiency studies (6.6% active-area efficiency) and outdoor analysis are discussed. Electroluminescence measurements are introduced as a quality tool. Another important point that is addressed is sustainability, which affects both market introduction and the direction of fundamental research.
The present work investigates the UV stability of the dye-sensitized solar cell (DSC) by parametrical investigation of the material influence on UV stability. UV illumination has been observed to cause degradation by slow photocatalysis in the DSC. Photooxidized impurities represent an unwanted side reaction with the redox pair of the electrolyte as the released electron will deplete the triiodide concentration. A study on the DSC cell was carried out with intermediate electrical characterization by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) to map the influence of UV illumination as a function of the H2O concentration in the electrolyte, the plate distance and the triiodide concentration. The results show that the H2O content has a detrimental influence on the DSC stability during UV illumination. A higher concentration of triiodide can buffer the reaction with impurities, so that a longer-term stability is achieved. A recovery of triiodide in UV aged cells with either no remaining triiodide or with such a low concentration that the cell current has been diffusionlimited, was seen during CV to -0.75 V under illumination. The reappearance of triiodide was accompanied with a production of hydrogen bubbles, which was related to the H2O content in the electrolyte and the exposure to UV. Our approach can be used to test the purity and the UV stability of various electrolytes.
To ensure long-term stable dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) and modules, a hermetic sealing is required. This research investigates the chemical stability ofI-/I3-redox electrolyte and four different glass frits (GFs). Sintered GF layers were openly exposed to nonaqueous redox electrolyte and redox electrolyte with 1, 5, and 10 wt% H2O in thin, encapsulated cells. The change inI3−absorbance was assigned to a reaction between the GF andI-/I3-electrolyte and was used to evaluate the chemical stability of the different GFs. TheI3−absorbance change was monitored over 100 days. Two out of the four GFs were unstable when H2O was added to the redox electrolyte. The H2O caused metal ion leaching which was determined from EDX analysis of the inorganic remains of electrolyte samples. A GF based on Bi2O3–SiO2–B2O3with low bond strength leached bismuth into electrolyte and formed theBiI3-complex. A ZnO–SiO2–Al2O3-based GF also became unstable when H2O was added to the redox electrolyte. Leaching of zinc ions due to exchange with H+resulted in the formation of a zinc-iodine compound which causedI3−depletion. By applying the test design to different types of GFs, the material suitability in the DSC working environment was investigated.
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