Quantum dot containing nanocomposite thin films for photoluminescent solar concentrators

Silicon oxide films containing CdS quantum dots have been deposited on glass substrates by a sol–gel dip-coating process. Hereby the CdS nanocrystals are grown during the thermal annealing step following the dip-coating procedure. Total hemispherical transmittance and reflectance measurements were carried out by means of a spectrophotometer coupled to an integrating sphere. For CdS-rich films, an absorption edge at photon energies in the vicinity of the band gap value of bulk CdS is observed. For lower CdS concentrations, the absorption edge shifts to higher photon energies, as expected for increasing quantum confinement. The samples show visible photoluminescence which is concentrated by total internal reflection and emitted at the edges of the substrate. The edge emission has been characterized by angle-dependent photoluminescent (PL) spectroscopy. Information on the lateral energy transport within the sample can be extracted from spectra obtained under spatial variation of the spot of excitation. The color of the photoluminescence can be tuned by varying the annealing temperature which governs crystal growth and thus the cluster size distribution. The characteristic features observed in the PL spectra clearly exhibit a blueshift for lower annealing temperatures, confirming the presence of quantum size effects.Advantages of the proposed concept of quantum dot containing coatings on glass panes for photoluminescent solar concentrators are the high potential for low-cost fabrication on the large scale and the suitability for architectural integration.     

Multi-stacked quantum dot solar cells fabricated by intermittent deposition of InGaAs

We report GaAs-based quantum dot (QD) solar cells fabricated by the intermittent deposition of InGaAs using molecular beam epitaxy. We obtained a highly stacked and well-aligned InGaAs QD structure of over 30 layers without using a strain compensation technique by the intermittent deposition of InGaAs layers. Moreover, there was no degradation in crystal quality. The external quantum efficiency of multi-stacked InGaAs QD solar cells extends the photo-absorption spectra toward a wavelength longer than the GaAs band gap, and the quantum efficiency increases as the number of stacking layers increases. The performance of the QD solar cells indicates that the novel InGaAs QDs facilitate the fabrication of highly stacked QD layers that are suitable for solar cell devices requiring thick QD layers for sufficient light absorption.     

Fabrication and full characterization of state-of-the-art quantum dot luminescent solar concentrators

The fabrication and full characterization of luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) comprising CdSe core/multishell quantum dots (QDs) is reported. TEM analysis shows that the QDs are well dispersed in the acrylic medium while maintaining a high quantum yield of 45%, resulting in highly transparent and luminescent polymer plates. A detailed optical analysis of the QD-LSCs including absorption, emission, and time-resolved fluorescence measurements is presented. Both silicon and GaAs solar cells attached to the side of the QD-LSCs are used to measure the external quantum efficiency and power conversion efficiency (2.8%) of the devices. Stability tests show only a minor decrease of 4% in photocurrent upon an equivalent of three months outdoor illumination. The optical data are used as input for a ray-trace model that is shown to describe the properties of the QD-LSCs well. The model was then used to extrapolate the properties of the small test devices to predict the power conversion efficiency of a 50×50 cm² module with a variety of different solar cells. The work described here gives a detailed insight into the promise of QD-based LSCs.     

Improving the optical efficiency and concentration of a single-plate quantum dot solar concentrator using near infra-red emitting quantum dots

Low luminescent quantum yields and large overlap between quantum dot (QD) emission and absorption spectra of present commercially-available visible-emitting QDs have led to low optical efficiencies for single-plate quantum dot solar concentrators (QDSCs). It is shown that using near infra-red (NIR) emitting QDs, re-absorption of QD emitted photons can be reduced greatly, thereby diminishing escape cone losses thus improving optical efficiencies and concentration ratios. Using Monte-Carlo ray-trace modelling, escape cone losses are quantified for different types of QD. A minimum 25% escape cone loss would be expected for a plate with refractive index of 1.5 containing QDs with no spectral overlap. It is shown that escape cone losses account for ∼57% of incident photons absorbed in QDSCs containing commercially-available visible-emitting QDs.     

A new solar concentrating system: Description, characterization and applications

Solar concentrating systems are usually very expensive and require a large space for their installation. This article presents a new solar concentrating device which is low-cost, small-scale, and has very good features for materials treatment. It consists of two sets of mirrors that reflect solar radiation in two steps with a beam array similar to a Fresnel lens. The power density was measured with Gardon-type radiometers. The results are in good agreement with previous work. The system has a nominal power of 2.5 kW, a measured concentration factor of 1040, and a measured focal diameter of 20 mm (90% of power level).     

Non-concentrating and asymmetric compound parabolic concentrating building façade integrated photovoltaics: An experimental comparison

Concentration of solar energy increases the illuminated flux on the photovoltaic (PV) surface thus less PV material is required. A novel asymmetric compound parabolic photovoltaic concentrator has been characterised experimentally with a similar non-concentrating system. Different numbers of PV strings connected within the system have been analysed and a power ratio of 1.62 measured compared to a similar non-concentrating PV panel with the same cell area. The solar to electrical conversion efficiency of 8.6% and 6.8% was achieved for the non-concentrating panel the concentrating system, respectively. The measured average solar cell temperature of the PV in the concentrator system was only 12 °C higher than that of the similar non-concentrating system with same cell area.     

Application of optical film with micro-lens array on a solar concentrator

A plastic solar concentrating optical film with horizontal cylinder micro-lens array (HCMA) is presented in this study. The solar concentrator (SC) is in the form of optical film with HCMA and it is attached on the surface of a solar cell. This film is a polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)-based optical layer. Compared with a plain solar collecting optical film without HCMA, the solar collecting optical film with HCMA can reduce the opportunity of reflection as light arrives at the surface and therefore can increase the refraction coefficient. As a result, the gain of photovoltaic power can be improved with the SC. Light is efficiently refracted by the HCMA and absorbed by the solar cell without the need of a solar tracking mechanism. Optimization of geometrical parameters of HCMA such as contact angle and gap (interspace) between each horizontal cylinder micro-lens is designed by simulation. The procedures of fabrication include reflow process, nickel-cobalt (Ni-Co) electroplating, and molding process. The measurement equipment of NEWPORT Oriel 91160+MODEL 6285 is utilized to measure the parameters such as open-circuit voltage V_oc, short-circuit current I_sc, and fill factor F.F., relating to the efficiency of the complete system. The experimental results show that a gain of photovoltaic power of about 3.30% is obtained with a contact angle of 62° and a gap of 15 μm.     

Design and fabrication of low concentrating second generation PRIDE concentrator

Prototype first generation Photovoltaic Facades of Reduced Costs Incorporating Devices with Optically Concentrating Elements (PRIDE) technology incorporating 3 and 9 mm wide single crystal silicon solar cells showed excellent power output compared to a similar non-concentrating system when it was characterized both indoors using a flash and continuous solar simulator. However, durability and instability of the dielectric material occurred in long-term characterisation when the concentrator was made by using casting technology. For large scale manufacturing process, durability, and to reduce the weight of the concentrator, second generation PRIDE design incorporated 6 mm wide “Saturn” solar cells at the absorber of dielectric concentrators. Injection moulding was used to manufacture 3 kWp of such PV concentrator module for building façade integration in Europe. Special design techniques and cost implications are implemented in this paper. A randomly selected PV concentrator was characterised at outdoors from twenty-four (≈3 kWp) 2nd-G PRIDE manufactured concentrators. The initial PV concentrators achieved a power ratio of 2.01 when compared to a similar non-concentrating system. The solar to electrical conversion efficiency achieved for the PV panel was 10.2% when characterised outdoors. In large scale manufacturing process, cost reduction of 40% is achievable using this concentrator manufacturing technology.     

Spectral beam splitting technology for increased conversion efficiency in solar concentrating systems: a review

Solar concentrating systems that employ one or more quantum receivers may realize improved energy utilization and higher electric conversion efficiency by incorporating spectral beam splitting technology. Such techniques were investigated in thermophotovoltaic conversion, introduced in the early 1960s, and in concentrating PV devices using cells of different band-gap materials, proposed as early as 1955. One major application was found in systems combining quantum and thermal receivers. This article presents a review of the various solar hybrid beam splitting systems proposed in the literature and the different spectrum splitting strategies employed.     

Synthesis and characterization of boron-doped Si quantum dots for all-Si quantum dot tandem solar cells

Multiple layers of Si quantum dots (QDs) in SiO₂ with a narrow size distribution were synthesized by a co-sputtering technique. Structural, electrical and optical properties of Si QD/SiO₂ multilayer films with various boron (B) concentrations introduced during the sputtering process were studied. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) revealed B-B/B-Si bonding, which suggests possible boron inclusion in the nanocrystals. The addition of boron was observed to suppress Si crystallization, though the boron concentration was found to have little effect on the QD size. Reductions in film resistivity were observed with the increase in boron concentration, which is believed to be a consequence of an increase in carrier concentration. This is supported by a large decrease in the activation energy accompanying the drop in resistivity, consistent with the Fermi energy moving towards the valence bands. The photoluminescence (PL) intensity was found to decrease with increase in boron concentration.     

Fabrication of CdS quantum dot sensitized solar cells via a pressing route

CdS quantum dots have been self-assembled on the surface of dispersed nanocrystalline TiO₂ particles, and a light-harvesting electrode has been fabricated from the resulting sensitized P25 particles using the pressing route. The spectroscopic and photochemical properties of photosensitized nanocrystalline TiO₂ electrodes were studied. The results indicate that electrode preparation by the pressing route may lead to partial loss or damage of the CdS coating and creation of regions that are inaccessible to the redox electrolyte. Nevertheless, the pressing method using pre-coated powders shows promise as a low cost method for the preparation of photoelectrodes in sensitized-solar cells.     

Distribution of absorbed heat in luminescent solar concentrator lightguides and effect on temperatures of mounted photovoltaic cells

Polymer plates containing fluorescent dyes with photovoltaic cells attached to one or more edges have the potential to be used for solar light collection in the built environment. The heating of the polymer plates and the resulting effects this may have on the operating temperatures of the attached photovoltaic cells and the integrity of the cells are studied. The results indicate that the luminescent solar concentrator under a solar simulator will allow the edge attached photovoltaic cells to operate up to 10 °C cooler compared to cells experiencing direct solar exposure because of the avoidance of infrared light. We also demonstrate the importance of correct adhesive to avoid rupture of the attached cell.     

Numerical investigation of the solar concentrating characteristics of 3D CPC and CPC-DC

A Monte Carlo Ray Tracing (MCRT) method was expanded with a bisection module to solve high-order nonlinear equations. Applying this modified MCRT method, the solar concentrating characteristics of a 3D Compound Parabolic Concentrator (3D CPC) were investigated. Moreover, a two-stage solar concentrator formed by a dish concentrator in tandem with a single 3D CPC (CPC-DC) was presented in this paper. Considering the influence of the tracking errors and slope errors, the solar concentrating performances of the CPC-DC was performed using the modified MCRT method. For DC having a rim angle of 45°, the numerical results show that the interception efficiency of the DC is about 4.0% higher than that of CPC-DC, but the concentrator ratio of the CPC-DC is twice as large as that of DC.     

Analytical and quasi-explicit four arbitrary point method for extraction of solar cell single-diode model parameters

In this paper, the five parameters of the solar cell single-diode model are analytical and quasi-explicitly extracted for the first time, just using the coordinates of four arbitrary points of the characteristic I–V curve and the slopes of the curve in these points. The new method presented, called Analytical and Quasi-Explicit (AQE) method, is exact because no simplifications of the model nor a priori approximations of the parameters are used and, it is quasi-explicit in the sense that all the parameters except one are explicitly given. The unique parameter not explicitly computed is easily obtained by solving a five-degree polynomial equation. Accurate and practical conditions are provided to select which solution of the previous equation is the desired parameter.It is also introduced a very easy method to obtain, directly from real data measurements, the needed four points of the I–V curve as well as the slopes in these points, without using any kind of sophisticated techniques.Finally, some experimental results are presented to demonstrate the high accuracy and simplicity of the new method. The results are compared with the well-known analytical five-point method and the recent oblique asymptote method.     

Modeling and simulation of solar cells quantum well based on SiGe/Si

In recent years, the development of quantum well solar cells QWSCs (Quantum Well Solar Cells) has generated a great deal of interest. These configurations have shown good promise to optimize the low conversion efficiency of conventional solar cells because of the high rate of absorption losses present in them. In this work, we are interested in modeling and simulation of two different structures of solar cells, a simple solar cell based on silicon Si and a quantum well solar cell SiGe/Si. When a solar cell is compared to 80 quantum well layers of Si_0.8Ge_0.2with a pin solar cell based on Si. The short circuit current J_sc increases from 23.55 to 37.48 mA/cm² with a relative increase of 59.15% found. In addition, the limit of the absorption band of the lower energy photons extends from 1100 nm to 2000 nm.     

Continuous flow solar thermal pasteurization of drinking water: Methods,devices, microbiology,and analysis

The ability to simply and robustly pasteurize drinking water would present tremendous worldwide human health benefits. Ingestion of unsafe drinking water is a leading cause of sickness and death in the developing world. A simple method to use concentrated solar power is presented here with two complimentary numerical models. The first model allows a prediction of water temperatures within the concentrator and enables a user to vary operating parameters to assess the impact on the temperatures. The second model relates the temperatures to pathogen inactivation kinetics so that predictions of pathogen populations can be made. It is found that with a modest size system that includes a parabolic trough concentrator, a thermally activated valve, and a fluid-to-fluid heat exchanger, near complete pathogen inactivation can be achieved. Comparisons are made between simulated and experimentally determined temperatures. The comparison demonstrates the veracity of the model.     

Numerical investigations of solar cell temperature for photovoltaic concentrator system with and without passive cooling arrangements

The numerical study of solar cell temperature for concentrating PV with concentration ratio of 10× is presented in this paper. A two dimensional thermal model has been developed to predict the temperature for PV concentrator system (solar cell and lens) with and without passive cooling arrangements. Based on a thermal model, the result shows that maximum of four numbers of uniform fins of 5 mm height and 1 mm thickness can be effectively used to reduce the solar cell temperature. In addition to that, the effects of ambient temperature and solar radiation intensity on the solar cell temperature have also been investigated for the system with and without cooling fins. Based on the influencing parameters of ambient temperature and solar radiation, two separate solar cell temperature correlations has been proposed for systems with and without cooling fins to predict the cell temperature for the range of given parameters. In our previous studies, the present 2-D model was extensively validated with a comprehensive unified model [8], [9] and [10].     

Technical and economical system comparison of photovoltaic and concentrating solar thermal power systems depending on annual global irradiation

Concentrating solar thermal power and photovoltaics are two major technologies for converting sunlight to electricity. Variations of the annual solar irradiation depending on the site influence their annual efficiency, specific output and electricity generation cost. Detailed technical and economical analyses performed with computer simulations point out differences of solar thermal parabolic trough power plants, non-tracked and two-axis-tracked PV systems. Therefore, 61 sites in Europe and North Africa covering a global annual irradiation range from 923 to 2438 kW h/m² a have been examined. Simulation results are usable irradiation by the systems, specific annual system output and levelled electricity cost. Cost assumptions are made for today's cost and expected cost in 10 years considering different progress ratios. This will lead to a cost reduction by 50% for PV systems and by 40% for solar thermal power plants. The simulation results show where are optimal regions for installing solar thermal trough and tracked PV systems in comparison to non-tracked PV. For low irradiation values the annual output of solar thermal systems is much lower than of PV systems. On the other hand, for high irradiations solar thermal systems provide the best-cost solution even when considering higher cost reduction factors for PV in the next decade. Electricity generation cost much below 10 Eurocents per kW h for solar thermal systems and about 12 Eurocents/kW h for PV can be expected in 10 years in North Africa.     

Electrical and thermal performance of silicon concentrator solar cells immersed in dielectric liquids

Direct liquid-immersion cooling of concentrator solar cells was proposed as a solution for receiver thermal management of concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) and hybrid concentrating photovoltaic thermal (CPV-T) systems. De-ionized (DI) water, isopropyl alcohol (IPA), ethyl acetate, and dimethyl silicon oil were selected as potential immersion liquids based on optical transmittance measurement results. Improvements to the electrical performance of silicon CPV cells were observed under a range of concentrations in the candidate dielectric liquids, arising from improved light collection and reduced cell surface recombination losses from surface adsorption of polar molecules. Three-dimensional numerical simulations with the four candidate liquids as the working fluids, exploring the thermal performance of a silicon CPV cell array in a liquid immersion prototype receiver, have been performed. Simulation results show that the direct-immersion cooling approach can maintain low and uniform cell temperature in the designed liquid immersion receiver. The fluid inlet velocity and flow mode, along with the fluid thermal properties, all have a significant influence on the cell array temperature.     

Study of hybrid energy system coupling fuel cell,solar thermal system and photovoltaic cell

The present work examines the combination of solar energy systems with Fuel cell. Indeed, fuel cells are green storage systems without any pollution effects. They are supplied by oxygen and hydrogen to produce electricity. That is why it is inescapable to find a source of hydrogen in order to use fuel cell. Several techniques can be adopted to produce hydrogen depending on the availability and the cost of the sources. One of the most utilized techniques is electrolysers. They allow to obtain hydrogen from water by several technologies among them proton exchange membrane (PEM) which is considered in this work. On the other hand, electrolysers need electrical power to operate. A green-green energy system can be constructed by using a renewable energy source to supply fuel cell trough electrolysers. A comparison between two solar systems (Photovoltaic and Parabolic Trough) coupled to fuel cell is performed. A case study on the Lebanese city of Tripoli is carried out. The study shows the performance of each of both combined systems for different parameters and proposes recommendations depending on the considered configuration.