Interfaces between water splitting catalysts and buried silicon junctions

Cox, Casandra R.; Winkler, M.; Pijpers, Joep J. H.; Buonassisi, Tonio; Nocera, Daniel G.

doi:10.1039/c2ee23932a

Cited by 59 publications

(71 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…These design changes improved J sc from 27 mA·cm -2 to 34 mA·cm -2 and increased the FF from 0.47 to 0.77; consequently, the efficiency improved from 7 to 13%. A 100-nm Ni passivation layer (used in place of indium tin oxide because it functions comparably and facilitates soldering wires to the cell) was deposited by dc sputtering as part of an extensive exploration of catalysts and passivations layers (33). Following Ni deposition, the cobalt-borate (CoB i ) catalyst was deposited.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modeling integrated photovoltaic–electrochemical devices using steady-state equivalent circuits

Winkler¹,

Cox

Nocera

et al. 2013

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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105

122

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We describe a framework for efficiently coupling the power output of a series-connected string of single-band-gap solar cells to an electrochemical process that produces storable fuels. We identify the fundamental efficiency limitations that arise from using solar cells with a single band gap, an arrangement that describes the use of currently economic solar cell technologies such as Si or CdTe. Steady-state equivalent circuit analysis permits modeling of practical systems. For the water-splitting reaction, modeling defines parameters that enable a solar-to-fuels efficiency exceeding 18% using laboratory GaAs cells and 16% using all earth-abundant components, including commercial Si solar cells and Co-or Ni-based oxygen evolving catalysts. Circuit analysis also provides a predictive tool: given the performance of the separate photovoltaic and electrochemical systems, the behavior of the coupled photovoltaic-electrochemical system can be anticipated. This predictive utility is demonstrated in the case of water oxidation at the surface of a Si solar cell, using a Co-borate catalyst. P owering electrochemical reactions with photovoltaic devices to produce fuels provides an appealing solution to the societal need for clean energy (1). Although the deployment of photovoltaic modules has expanded rapidly over the last decade as costs have dropped (2), utilization of solar power is constrained by its local intermittency, thus providing an imperative for storage by the direct conversion of solar energy to chemical fuels. Photosynthetic organisms directly convert solar energy into chemical fuels by splitting water to produce molecular oxygen and hydrogen equivalents, which are fixed by their combination with carbon dioxide to produce carbohydrates. The technological imitation of photosynthesis-an "artificial leaf"-can be realized by integrating oxygen and hydrogen evolution catalysts to a semiconductor in a buried junction configuration (3). Most buried junction devices have relied on expensive solar cell architectures and/or catalysts (4), including those demonstrating solar-to-fuel efficiencies (SFEs) exceeding 18% (5-7). More economical artificial leaves have been realized with earthabundant catalysts and solar cell materials but at reduced SFE (8, 9). We now seek to provide an analytical framework for the construction of higher SFE architectures comprising earthabundant materials.The efficiency of converting solar energy to stored chemical fuel has been considered (10-13) for a variety of configurations, including the specific treatment of buried junction devices (10). A primary result of these analyses is that singlejunction solar cells are limited in powering water splitting with high SFE because solar cell materials that are well matched to the solar spectrum do not produce sufficient voltages to drive water splitting. Multijunction devices overcome this limitation, enabling high SFE by integrating several materials into a single multijunction device (5-7, 12). Despite their higher limiting SFEs, however, multijun...

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modeling integrated photovoltaic–electrochemical devices using steady-state equivalent circuits

Winkler¹,

Cox

Nocera

et al. 2013

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

Self Cite

105

122

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“…Considering a PV-EC device based on commercially available single-junction Si solar cells and literature values for the previously reported Tafel behavior of the catalysts used herein (38,44), equivalent-circuit modeling predicts a 10% or higher SFE can be achieved using three single-junction c-Si devices series connected in a minimodule with a PV efficiency of 15% or higher (red dashed curve in Fig. 1C).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We have pursued this goal by using a buried-junction device coated with transparent conducting oxides, overlaid with self-healing catalysts that self-assemble upon oxidation of Co 2+ (29-36), Ni 2+ (37-39), and Mn 2+ (40, 41) ions in phosphate or borate electrolytes. These catalysts have shown great fidelity for interfacing with a variety of buried junctions (42)(43)(44)(45)(46) to deliver what is more commonly known as the artificial leaf (47). This approach is generally being adopted by others (48,49).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Ten-percent solar-to-fuel conversion with nonprecious materials

Cox

Lee

Nocera

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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289

233

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Direct solar-to-fuels conversion can be achieved by coupling a photovoltaic device with water-splitting catalysts. We demonstrate that a solar-to-fuels efficiency (SFE) > 10% can be achieved with nonprecious, low-cost, and commercially ready materials. We present a systems design of a modular photovoltaic (PV)-electrochemical device comprising a crystalline silicon PV minimodule and lowcost hydrogen-evolution reaction and oxygen-evolution reaction catalysts, without power electronics. This approach allows for facile optimization en route to addressing lower-cost devices relying on crystalline silicon at high SFEs for direct solar-to-fuels conversion.istributed and grid-scale adoption of nondispatchable, intermittent, renewable-energy sources requires new technologies that simultaneously address energy conversion and storage challenges (1, 2). Coupling photovoltaics to drive catalytic fuelforming reaction, such as water splitting to generate H 2 , allows for direct solar-to-fuels conversion. The solar-generated H 2 can effectively be harnessed to electricity by fuel cell devices (3, 4) or converted to liquid fuels upon its combination with CO or CO 2 (5-7). For this technology to be effectively implemented, a solar-to-fuels conversion efficiency (SFE) of 10% or higher is desirable (8, 9).Direct photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting by a single absorber material has attracted a vast amount of attention (10, 11), and recent progress indicates improvements in the field (12, 13); but after decades of research, direct PEC faces three challenges to increase conversion efficiency: (i) Direct absorber band alignment is required to provide carriers with appropriate potential to both half reactions. Although such an alignment is difficult to achieve in a single material initially, any change in band alignment due to changing surface conditions can result in further efficiency degradation. This makes it challenging to design devices that maintain robust, high efficiencies in actual operation.(ii) The wide absorber bandgap (>1.23 eV; typically >1.6 eV) needed to drive the water-splitting reaction is not optimized for the solar spectrum, which results in a maximum SFE of only 7% (14-16). (iii) The absorbers are poor catalysts, and they are incapable of efficiently performing the four proton-coupled electron transfer chemistry (17-22) that is needed for water splitting.These deficiencies can be overcome by substituting a PEC device with a buried-junction photovoltaic (PV) device and an electrochemical catalyst (EC) system, forming a PV-EC tandem (23-27). In a buried-junction device, the electric field is generated at an internal junction within the semiconductor and is then coupled with water-splitting catalysts through ohmic contacts, which can either be conductive coatings directly deposited onto the PV or connected through wires to the electrodes. The buried junction relaxes the constraints imposed by a PEC device because it separates light absorption from catalysis, and does not require that the absorber be stable in ...

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“…The metal oxide electrocatalysts can improve the photocurrent efficiency for water oxidation, which suppresses the side reactions, such as the oxidation reaction of silicon into silica [27]. Furthermore, metal oxides can achieve a high work function owing to the oxygen vacancies and cation oxidation states [29], which improves both the PEC activity and stability [25,26,30,31]. Nickel oxide is considered as one of the best OER electrocatalysts due to its rich abundance, a wide band gap, nontoxic and good stability.…”

Section: Metal Oxide Layersmentioning

confidence: 99%