Aussie project aims to produce cheap, efficient solar cells

Researchers from the Queensland University of Technology have partnered with two Australian companies working in solar research and development for a project that aims to commercialise ultra-low-cost, flexible perovskite solar cells. The lead investigator on the team, Professor Hongxia Wang from the QUT School of Chemistry and Physics, said a consortium led by Halocell Energy, including First Graphene and QUT, was awarded a grant of $2,028,773 from the Australian Government’s Cooperative Research Centres Project.

Wang said QUT will deliver expertise in material development, facilities for advanced material characterisation and testing, and assistance in developing carbon inks using low-cost carbon materials and graphene in collaboration with Halocell and First Graphene for roll-to-roll production of perovskite cells and modules. “It’s a three-year project with a total funding size of more than $5.26 million,” Wang said.

The key project outcomes include replacement of high-cost precious-metal-based conductor materials with cost-effective carbon-based composite materials and upscaling the production process to allow high-volume, ultra-low-cost production of the perovskite solar cells. “This will facilitate the commercialisation of perovskite photovoltaics in Australia using all Australian raw materials, improving energy security and providing significant job opportunities as a primary and enabling technology for other small to medium-sized enterprises,” Wang said.

Project leader and Halocell CEO Paul Moonie said perovskite solar cells offer many advantages over traditional silicon solar cells. The perovskite solar cells will be manufactured using Halocell’s roll-to-roll production process at the company’s Wagga Wagga plant.

Solar cell efficiency is the measure of how much sunlight a solar cell can convert into electricity. Silicon cells have reportedly reached the peak of their technical innovation, while perovskite solar cells have demonstrated their efficiency of more than 26% within 10 years of research and development. Moonie said among the advantages of perovskite solar cells is that they can be applied on flexible substrate using low-cost roll-to-roll production processes. “And perovskite cells are quite simply better for the planet with a significantly smaller manufacturing footprint, far less energy intensive with much less toxic waste material than existing photovoltaics technology,” Moonie said.

Graphene is a one-atom-thick layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice. It is the building block of graphite, which is used, among other things, in pencil tips. Michael Bell, CEO of First Graphene, said previous research had found that cells made with alternative carbon-based materials outperform conventional silicon cells in low and artificial light conditions in relation to generating and supplying power for niche applications.

“Validation of these graphene-based materials will help build a strong business case for full-scale commercial production of both perovskite cells and the materials needed to make them in large volumes,” Bell said.

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