The current investigation focuses on the computational analysis of the absorber layer Cs2PtI6, which is devoid of lead and possesses a low band gap of 1.37 eV. This material is attractive due to its large absorbance coefficient and non-toxic properties. Moreover, one of the most effective methods for enhancing the photovoltaic electrical properties and maximizing its outputs is the selection of more stable and superior charge transfer materials. The materials, MoS2 and WS2 were chosen as the most suitable substances for the Hole Transport Layer Material (HTLM) and Electron Transport Layer Material (ETLM) in the device. This work investigates the impact of several factors on the enhancement of a photovoltaic cell using SCAPS-1D computational software. Specifically, the research focuses on the width of the light active film, the concentration of Cs2PtI6 defect traps, the concentration of interface defect traps, the acceptor concentration (CA), influence of back contact, influence of temperature, series resistance (Rs), and shunt resistance (Rsh) and impedance spectroscopy of the Cs2PtI6 PSSC. At a temperature of 300 K, the novel configuration FTO/WS2/Cs2PtI6/MoS2/Pt attains a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 36.60 %, an open circuit voltage (Voc) of 1.377 V, a short circuit current density (Jsc) of 30.176 mA/cm2, and a fill factor (FF) of 88.03 %, respectively. The summary of results presented here are anticipated to provide assistance and encourage researchers to manufacture this enduring lead-free perovskite solar cell promptly.
{"title":"A computational examination of lead free Cs2PtI6 based perovskite solar cell with investigation of several carrier transport materials","authors":"Nitesh Kumar Singh , Anshul Agarwal , Vivek Shrivastava , Lalit Kumar Awasthi","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113430","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113430","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The current investigation focuses on the computational analysis of the absorber layer Cs<sub>2</sub>PtI<sub>6</sub>, which is devoid of lead and possesses a low band gap of 1.37 eV. This material is attractive due to its large absorbance coefficient and non-toxic properties. Moreover, one of the most effective methods for enhancing the photovoltaic electrical properties and maximizing its outputs is the selection of more stable and superior charge transfer materials. The materials, MoS<sub>2</sub> and WS<sub>2</sub> were chosen as the most suitable substances for the Hole Transport Layer Material (HTLM) and Electron Transport Layer Material (ETLM) in the device. This work investigates the impact of several factors on the enhancement of a photovoltaic cell using SCAPS-1D computational software. Specifically, the research focuses on the width of the light active film, the concentration of Cs<sub>2</sub>PtI<sub>6</sub> defect traps, the concentration of interface defect traps, the acceptor concentration (C<sub>A</sub>), influence of back contact, influence of temperature, series resistance (R<sub>s</sub>), and shunt resistance (R<sub>sh</sub>) and impedance spectroscopy of the Cs<sub>2</sub>PtI<sub>6</sub> PSSC. At a temperature of 300 K, the novel configuration FTO/WS<sub>2</sub>/Cs<sub>2</sub>PtI<sub>6</sub>/MoS<sub>2</sub>/Pt attains a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 36.60 %, an open circuit voltage (V<sub>oc</sub>) of 1.377 V, a short circuit current density (J<sub>sc</sub>) of 30.176 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>, and a fill factor (FF) of 88.03 %, respectively. The summary of results presented here are anticipated to provide assistance and encourage researchers to manufacture this enduring lead-free perovskite solar cell promptly.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113430"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141215","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Novel carbon materials are proposed and used as additives to improve the solar energy harvesting ability of phase change materials. In this work, waste asphalt is carbonized and utilized as carbon additive to enhance the thermal performance of polyethylene glycol-stearic acid mixture. The improvement of thermal conductivity and thermal energy storage performance by carbonized asphalt is investigated. The results reveal that compared with polyethylene glycol-stearic acid mixture, the maximum increase of thermal conductivity of the composite phase change material is up to 10.2 %, meanwhile the maximum decrease of latent heat of melting and crystallization is 10.9 % and 9.6 %, respectively. During the heating and cooling processes, the total time for the temperature at the geometric center of composite phase change material samples to reach 80 °C can be 68.35 % and 21.71 % shorter than that of polyethylene glycol-stearic acid mixture, respectively. The photothermal conversion performance of the composites can be up to 2.01 times better than that of the polyethylene glycol-stearic acid mixture. The results denote that carbonized asphalt is beneficial for improving the thermal energy storage and photothermal conversion performance of the composites. The use of carbonized asphalt in phase change energy storage proposes a novel method for recycling waste asphalt. The judicious utilization of carbonized asphalt as carbon-based additives in composite phase change material not only diminishes the disposal costs but also enhances the value of the waste, contributing to considerable economic and environmental benefits.
{"title":"High value-added utilization of waste asphalt: Enhance phase change energy storage performance using simple carbonization for solar energy harvesting","authors":"Junbing Xiao , Xiangyu Zhong , Jiandi Ren , Danqing Li , Fangfang Zhong , Youfu Lv , Chuankun Jia , Changhui Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113434","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113434","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Novel carbon materials are proposed and used as additives to improve the solar energy harvesting ability of phase change materials. In this work, waste asphalt is carbonized and utilized as carbon additive to enhance the thermal performance of polyethylene glycol-stearic acid mixture. The improvement of thermal conductivity and thermal energy storage performance by carbonized asphalt is investigated. The results reveal that compared with polyethylene glycol-stearic acid mixture, the maximum increase of thermal conductivity of the composite phase change material is up to 10.2 %, meanwhile the maximum decrease of latent heat of melting and crystallization is 10.9 % and 9.6 %, respectively. During the heating and cooling processes, the total time for the temperature at the geometric center of composite phase change material samples to reach 80 °C can be 68.35 % and 21.71 % shorter than that of polyethylene glycol-stearic acid mixture, respectively. The photothermal conversion performance of the composites can be up to 2.01 times better than that of the polyethylene glycol-stearic acid mixture. The results denote that carbonized asphalt is beneficial for improving the thermal energy storage and photothermal conversion performance of the composites. The use of carbonized asphalt in phase change energy storage proposes a novel method for recycling waste asphalt. The judicious utilization of carbonized asphalt as carbon-based additives in composite phase change material not only diminishes the disposal costs but also enhances the value of the waste, contributing to considerable economic and environmental benefits.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113434"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143092708","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-18DOI: 10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113406
Hong Zhong , Zhongyu Lai , Dan Xu , Shifeng Wang
Interfacial evaporation is one of the most environmentally friendly ways to obtain clean water. However, organic pollutants, especially volatile organic compounds (VOCs), can enter the vapor with solar drive and ultimately remain in the condensed water, significantly affecting the widespread application of solar-driven interfacial evaporation. In this study, a 3D interfacial evaporator, designed based on laser induced porous graphene and photocatalysts, has been developed to achieve high evaporation rates and excellent organic compound decomposition simultaneously, thereby obtaining clean water resources. The nano photocatalysts are introduced into porous graphene through hydrothermal and laser induced transfer technology. Due to the excellent photothermal performance of laser induced graphene and the 3D design of device, the solar driven evaporation efficiency of the interfacial evaporator can reach to 2.13 kg m−2 h−1 under 1.0 solar illumination. Moreover, thanks to the outstanding degradation performance of nano-TiO2, the device can decompose more than 97 % of organic pollutants (Rhodamine B and Methylene Blue) under 90 min of 1 solar illumination. Furthermore, the decomposition efficiency can reach 99.8 % under 6 h of real solar radiation. Therefore, this device can sustainably provide clean water resources in an environmentally friendly manner, especially designed for economically challenged.
{"title":"Highly pure water generation via solar driven evaporation and photodegradation based on laser-induced graphene","authors":"Hong Zhong , Zhongyu Lai , Dan Xu , Shifeng Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113406","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113406","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Interfacial evaporation is one of the most environmentally friendly ways to obtain clean water. However, organic pollutants, especially volatile organic compounds (VOCs), can enter the vapor with solar drive and ultimately remain in the condensed water, significantly affecting the widespread application of solar-driven interfacial evaporation. In this study, a 3D interfacial evaporator, designed based on laser induced porous graphene and photocatalysts, has been developed to achieve high evaporation rates and excellent organic compound decomposition simultaneously, thereby obtaining clean water resources. The nano photocatalysts are introduced into porous graphene through hydrothermal and laser induced transfer technology. Due to the excellent photothermal performance of laser induced graphene and the 3D design of device, the solar driven evaporation efficiency of the interfacial evaporator can reach to 2.13 kg m<sup>−2</sup> h<sup>−1</sup> under 1.0 solar illumination. Moreover, thanks to the outstanding degradation performance of nano-TiO<sub>2</sub>, the device can decompose more than 97 % of organic pollutants (Rhodamine B and Methylene Blue) under 90 min of 1 solar illumination. Furthermore, the decomposition efficiency can reach 99.8 % under 6 h of real solar radiation. Therefore, this device can sustainably provide clean water resources in an environmentally friendly manner, especially designed for economically challenged.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113406"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141198","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-18DOI: 10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113418
Yingwen Zhao , Paul Procel Moya , Yifeng Zhao , Zhirong Yao , Jin Yan , Hiroki Nakajima , Engin Özkol , Miro Zeman , Luana Mazzarella , Olindo Isabella
Polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) carrier-selective passivating contacts (CSPCs), featuring high photoconversion efficiency (PCE) and cost-effectiveness, have emerged as a promising approach for high-efficiency crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar cells. To minimize parasitic absorption losses induced by doped poly-Si window layers, wide bandgap oxygen-alloyed poly-Si (poly-SiOx) layers are developed. However, challenges persist in achieving excellent surface passivation for boron-doped poly-SiOx contact stacks, likely caused by boron diffusion during annealing and the reduced doping concentration resulting from lower crystallinity as oxygen content increases. In this study, we investigate the impact on the passivating contact structure and solar cell performance of a 10-nm thick intrinsic hydrogenated amorphous silicon buffer layer with varying oxygen content (a-Si (Ox):H) deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), and placed between the tunneling silicon oxide (SiOx) and the poly-SiOx (p+). After the hydrogenation step, we obtain both high passivation quality with implied open circuit voltage (iVoc) of 728.3 mV and low contact resistivity (ρc) of 59.18 mΩ cm2 on polished surface for oxygen-free a-Si:H buffer layer. These improvements can be attributed to the appropriate thickness of the tunnel oxide and confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images, to higher crystallinity of the buffer layer, which facilitates more efficient doping in the buffer layer. This is evidenced by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results. At the device level, a front-side textured, rear-side flat, rear junction poly-SiOx/poly-SiOx solar cell on n-type c-Si wafer, an efficiency improvement can be observed from 3.55 % without a PECVD buffer layer to 18.9 % with an oxygen-free a-Si:H PECVD buffer layer. The impact of the buffer layer crystallinity on cell performance is further demonstrated by deploying a 10-nm thick LPCVD buffer layer, which facilitates an efficiency of 21.15 % for the same device structure.
{"title":"Optimization of interface properties in p-type poly-SiOx passivating contacts through intrinsic buffer layer modification","authors":"Yingwen Zhao , Paul Procel Moya , Yifeng Zhao , Zhirong Yao , Jin Yan , Hiroki Nakajima , Engin Özkol , Miro Zeman , Luana Mazzarella , Olindo Isabella","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113418","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113418","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) carrier-selective passivating contacts (CSPCs), featuring high photoconversion efficiency (PCE) and cost-effectiveness, have emerged as a promising approach for high-efficiency crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar cells. To minimize parasitic absorption losses induced by doped poly-Si window layers, wide bandgap oxygen-alloyed poly-Si (poly-SiO<sub><em>x</em></sub>) layers are developed. However, challenges persist in achieving excellent surface passivation for boron-doped poly-SiO<sub><em>x</em></sub> contact stacks, likely caused by boron diffusion during annealing and the reduced doping concentration resulting from lower crystallinity as oxygen content increases. In this study, we investigate the impact on the passivating contact structure and solar cell performance of a 10-nm thick intrinsic hydrogenated amorphous silicon buffer layer with varying oxygen content (a-Si (O<sub><em>x</em></sub>):H) deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), and placed between the tunneling silicon oxide (SiO<sub><em>x</em></sub>) and the poly-SiO<sub><em>x</em></sub> (<em>p</em><sup>+</sup>). After the hydrogenation step, we obtain both high passivation quality with implied open circuit voltage (i<em>V</em><sub>oc</sub>) of 728.3 mV and low contact resistivity (<em>ρ</em><sub>c</sub>) of 59.18 mΩ cm<sup>2</sup> on polished surface for oxygen-free a-Si:H buffer layer. These improvements can be attributed to the appropriate thickness of the tunnel oxide and confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images, to higher crystallinity of the buffer layer, which facilitates more efficient doping in the buffer layer. This is evidenced by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results. At the device level, a front-side textured, rear-side flat, rear junction poly-SiO<sub><em>x</em></sub>/poly-SiO<sub><em>x</em></sub> solar cell on n-type c-Si wafer, an efficiency improvement can be observed from 3.55 % without a PECVD buffer layer to 18.9 % with an oxygen-free a-Si:H PECVD buffer layer. The impact of the buffer layer crystallinity on cell performance is further demonstrated by deploying a 10-nm thick LPCVD buffer layer, which facilitates an efficiency of 21.15 % for the same device structure.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113418"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141214","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-17DOI: 10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113407
John Marc C. Puguan , Pramod V. Rathod , Pooja V. Chavan , Joohyung Lee , Hern Kim
Smart windows, capable of dynamically modulating solar irradiation across different wavelengths, have garnered significant research interest due to their potential applications in energy conservation, privacy enhancement, and healthcare improvement. Understanding the nature of solar light dictates material selection and design. As solar light consists mainly of visible and infrared, one has to select appropriate material that absorbs or reflects or responds to these bands to optimize efficiency. In this review, we discuss the different materials that are used to achieve a highly efficient smart window design that will ensure human visual comfort and ultimately minimum energy consumption in building spaces. This paper offers a comprehensive survey of recent material technologies and presents insights derived from experimental and simulation studies in the context of building integration. It introduces an innovative performance regulation framework for achieving optimal smart window characteristics and assesses their practicality within both material and building applications. Furthermore, the paper addresses persistent obstacles and future research directions in this promising field. The pursuit of economically viable and adaptable smart window solutions holds the promise of advancing energy efficiency, comfort, and privacy across diverse built environments.
{"title":"Solar light modulating materials for energy efficient smart window design: Recent trends and future Perspectives","authors":"John Marc C. Puguan , Pramod V. Rathod , Pooja V. Chavan , Joohyung Lee , Hern Kim","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113407","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113407","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Smart windows, capable of dynamically modulating solar irradiation across different wavelengths, have garnered significant research interest due to their potential applications in energy conservation, privacy enhancement, and healthcare improvement. Understanding the nature of solar light dictates material selection and design. As solar light consists mainly of visible and infrared, one has to select appropriate material that absorbs or reflects or responds to these bands to optimize efficiency. In this review, we discuss the different materials that are used to achieve a highly efficient smart window design that will ensure human visual comfort and ultimately minimum energy consumption in building spaces. This paper offers a comprehensive survey of recent material technologies and presents insights derived from experimental and simulation studies in the context of building integration. It introduces an innovative performance regulation framework for achieving optimal smart window characteristics and assesses their practicality within both material and building applications. Furthermore, the paper addresses persistent obstacles and future research directions in this promising field. The pursuit of economically viable and adaptable smart window solutions holds the promise of advancing energy efficiency, comfort, and privacy across diverse built environments.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113407"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141203","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-16DOI: 10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113426
Yuxin Yu , Yufen Chen , Songping Mo , Junhao Chen , Yanping Du , Lisi Jia , Ying Chen
Phase change material emulsions (PCMEs), as novel latent heat storage media, have great potential to advance applications. A comprehensive review of PCMEs is provided in this paper, including preparation methods, dispersion stability, phase change cycling stability, and improvement strategies. Various preparation techniques are presented, emphasizing the important factors that affect the homogeneity and stability of the PCMEs. A detailed analysis of the factors affecting dispersion stability is provided, emphasizing techniques for enhancing it. The dynamics of PCMEs during their solid-liquid phase transitions are investigated, introducing mechanisms of phase change cycling stability. Performance-enhancing methods are suggested, including using surfactants and nano-additives to improve the stability of PCMEs. Challenges and future research directions are also discussed.
{"title":"A comprehensive review on preparation, dispersion stability and phase change cycling stability of phase change microemulsions","authors":"Yuxin Yu , Yufen Chen , Songping Mo , Junhao Chen , Yanping Du , Lisi Jia , Ying Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113426","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113426","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Phase change material emulsions (PCMEs), as novel latent heat storage media, have great potential to advance applications. A comprehensive review of PCMEs is provided in this paper, including preparation methods, dispersion stability, phase change cycling stability, and improvement strategies. Various preparation techniques are presented, emphasizing the important factors that affect the homogeneity and stability of the PCMEs. A detailed analysis of the factors affecting dispersion stability is provided, emphasizing techniques for enhancing it. The dynamics of PCMEs during their solid-liquid phase transitions are investigated, introducing mechanisms of phase change cycling stability. Performance-enhancing methods are suggested, including using surfactants and nano-additives to improve the stability of PCMEs. Challenges and future research directions are also discussed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113426"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141121","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-16DOI: 10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113428
Chang Ji , Xueming Yang , Haiqi Xu , Hu Zhao , Jianfei Xie
Molten salt is an important medium for heat transfer and storage in concentrated solar power (CSP) system. In this study, a prediction model was established to assess the impact of molten salt properties and heat transfer fluid (HTF) temperature on the performance of CSP systems using the Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) trained by data from SAM software. The model incorporates the operating temperature, density, specific heat capacity, viscosity, thermal conductivity, thermal energy storage (TES) cost, and HTF cold/hot temperatures of the molten salt as inputs, with levelized cost of energy (LCOE), annual energy generation (AEG) and solar-electricity efficiency (ƞ) as outputs. The sensitivity of molten salt properties to the LCOE, AEG and ƞ of the SPT system was analyzed, with a focus on the impact of specific heat capacity and molten salt unit price variations. The MLP model exhibits good reliability in predicting LCOE and AEG/ƞ, with root mean square errors (RMSE) of 0.0021 and 0.0026, respectively. It was found that specific heat capacity is the most influential factor for AEG/ƞ while carbonates are mostly sensitive to price and solar salt and chloride are mostly sensitive to specific heat capacity for LCOE. For ternary chloride salts, a ±40 % fluctuation in the specific heat capacity resulted in LCOE and AEG/ƞ changes of 13.40 % and 22.19 %, respectively. These changes are 1.02 and 1.05 times larger compared to the solar salt, and 2.14 and 1.39 times larger compared to the ternary carbonate salt. This study offers insights for CSP system design and optimization.
{"title":"Estimation of power and economic performance of CSP system under different heat transfer and storage fluids using artificial neural networks","authors":"Chang Ji , Xueming Yang , Haiqi Xu , Hu Zhao , Jianfei Xie","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113428","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113428","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Molten salt is an important medium for heat transfer and storage in concentrated solar power (CSP) system. In this study, a prediction model was established to assess the impact of molten salt properties and heat transfer fluid (HTF) temperature on the performance of CSP systems using the Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) trained by data from SAM software. The model incorporates the operating temperature, density, specific heat capacity, viscosity, thermal conductivity, thermal energy storage (TES) cost, and HTF cold/hot temperatures of the molten salt as inputs, with levelized cost of energy (LCOE), annual energy generation (AEG) and solar-electricity efficiency (<em>ƞ</em>) as outputs. The sensitivity of molten salt properties to the LCOE, AEG and <em>ƞ</em> of the SPT system was analyzed, with a focus on the impact of specific heat capacity and molten salt unit price variations. The MLP model exhibits good reliability in predicting LCOE and AEG/<em>ƞ</em>, with root mean square errors (RMSE) of 0.0021 and 0.0026, respectively. It was found that specific heat capacity is the most influential factor for AEG/<em>ƞ</em> while carbonates are mostly sensitive to price and solar salt and chloride are mostly sensitive to specific heat capacity for LCOE. For ternary chloride salts, a ±40 % fluctuation in the specific heat capacity resulted in LCOE and AEG/<em>ƞ</em> changes of 13.40 % and 22.19 %, respectively. These changes are 1.02 and 1.05 times larger compared to the solar salt, and 2.14 and 1.39 times larger compared to the ternary carbonate salt. This study offers insights for CSP system design and optimization.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113428"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141196","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-16DOI: 10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113429
Beiyi Zhang , Jingwen Sun , Yibing Lin , Jing Chen , Yao Bao , Jilin Wang , Yuanlie Yu
Passive radiative cooling as an effective energy-saving cooling technology has attracted enormous attention. However, the fabrication of the materials with highly efficient passive radiative cooling capability for practical applications still remains a challenge. Herein, a pompon chrysanthemum-like hierarchical structure is fabricated by in-situ growth of boron nitride nanosheets on the surfaces of hollow silica nanospheres (h-SiO2@BNNSs). The as-obtained h-SiO2@BNNSs can tightly stacked together on the surface of aluminum oxide plate to form a h-SiO2@BNNS coating with an average solar radiation reflectivity of ∼0.80 and an average selective infrared emissivity of ∼0.85. These good solar radiation reflectivity and high selective infrared emissivity, combining with the multistage scattering among randomly distributed BNNSs, endue the h-SiO2@BNNS coating a highly efficient passive radiative cooling capability. The indoor simulated radiative cooling performance test shows that the h-SiO2@BNNS coating can achieve a temperature decrease of ∼8.5 °C at the constant solar irradiance of ∼800 W m−2. Subsequently, the outdoor measurement further demonstrates this capability showing an average temperature decrease of ∼8.5 °C with a maximum value of ∼10.0 °C on a clear day and an average temperature decrease of ∼9.0 °C with a maximum value of ∼11.7 °C on a slight cloudy day, respectively. Besides, the h-SiO2@BNNS coating also possesses self-cleaning and anticorrosive performances, ensuring the stability and durability of the coating utilized in different environments. This work provides a feasible pathway for the fabrication of efficient passive radiative cooling materials by reasonable combination of the solar reflection, scattering and selective infrared emission.
{"title":"Self-cleaning and anticorrosive pompon chrysanthemum-like hollow silica nanosphere@boron nitride nanosheets hierarchical coating for highly efficient daytime passive radiative cooling","authors":"Beiyi Zhang , Jingwen Sun , Yibing Lin , Jing Chen , Yao Bao , Jilin Wang , Yuanlie Yu","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113429","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113429","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Passive radiative cooling as an effective energy-saving cooling technology has attracted enormous attention. However, the fabrication of the materials with highly efficient passive radiative cooling capability for practical applications still remains a challenge. Herein, a pompon chrysanthemum-like hierarchical structure is fabricated by in-situ growth of boron nitride nanosheets on the surfaces of hollow silica nanospheres (h-SiO<sub>2</sub>@BNNSs). The as-obtained h-SiO<sub>2</sub>@BNNSs can tightly stacked together on the surface of aluminum oxide plate to form a h-SiO<sub>2</sub>@BNNS coating with an average solar radiation reflectivity of ∼0.80 and an average selective infrared emissivity of ∼0.85. These good solar radiation reflectivity and high selective infrared emissivity, combining with the multistage scattering among randomly distributed BNNSs, endue the h-SiO<sub>2</sub>@BNNS coating a highly efficient passive radiative cooling capability. The indoor simulated radiative cooling performance test shows that the h-SiO<sub>2</sub>@BNNS coating can achieve a temperature decrease of ∼8.5 °C at the constant solar irradiance of ∼800 W m<sup>−2</sup>. Subsequently, the outdoor measurement further demonstrates this capability showing an average temperature decrease of ∼8.5 °C with a maximum value of ∼10.0 °C on a clear day and an average temperature decrease of ∼9.0 °C with a maximum value of ∼11.7 °C on a slight cloudy day, respectively. Besides, the h-SiO<sub>2</sub>@BNNS coating also possesses self-cleaning and anticorrosive performances, ensuring the stability and durability of the coating utilized in different environments. This work provides a feasible pathway for the fabrication of efficient passive radiative cooling materials by reasonable combination of the solar reflection, scattering and selective infrared emission.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113429"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141216","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-14DOI: 10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113409
Morteza Mohammadi
Direct absorption flat solar collectors (DAFSC) have been drawn much attention to many residential heating purposes. It has been shown that thermal efficiency of these thermal devices will be enhanced if appropriate amount of nanoparticles volume concentration is exploited in collector. In the present study, first of all, a determination procedure for finding optimum amount of arbitrary chosen nanoparticles volume fraction utilized in DAFSC was presented by use of general chart of solar-weighted absorption coefficients against optical thickness of nanofluids in which the nanofluids extinction coefficients were predicted by independent Rayleigh scattering approximation model. This is an important step preventing either undesirable larger value of thermal losses from collector or reducing construction cost of nanofluid-based DAFSC due to smaller exploitation of nanoparticle volume concentration which can be considered as a part of novelty of current study. In the next step, an important designing parameter of collector namely overall heat transfer coefficient was predicted by utilization of thermal resistance network of DAFSC from which thermal losses of collector can be computed. Finally, among various environmental parameters affecting thermal performance of collector, it was found that by increasing wind speed from 0.125 to 16.2 m/s, energy and exergy efficiencies of DAFSC were severely reduced up to 30 % and 51 %, respectively. Furthermore, higher ambient air temperature and relative humidity can boost up thermal efficiency of collector up to 14 % while the role of ambient air temperature, solely, at constant value of other affecting parameters was quite minor.
{"title":"Environmental influences on thermal performance of direct absorption solar collector filled with nanofluid","authors":"Morteza Mohammadi","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113409","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113409","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Direct absorption flat solar collectors (DAFSC) have been drawn much attention to many residential heating purposes. It has been shown that thermal efficiency of these thermal devices will be enhanced if appropriate amount of nanoparticles volume concentration is exploited in collector. In the present study, first of all, a determination procedure for finding optimum amount of arbitrary chosen nanoparticles volume fraction utilized in DAFSC was presented by use of general chart of solar-weighted absorption coefficients against optical thickness of nanofluids in which the nanofluids extinction coefficients were predicted by independent Rayleigh scattering approximation model. This is an important step preventing either undesirable larger value of thermal losses from collector or reducing construction cost of nanofluid-based DAFSC due to smaller exploitation of nanoparticle volume concentration which can be considered as a part of novelty of current study. In the next step, an important designing parameter of collector namely overall heat transfer coefficient was predicted by utilization of thermal resistance network of DAFSC from which thermal losses of collector can be computed. Finally, among various environmental parameters affecting thermal performance of collector, it was found that by increasing wind speed from 0.125 to 16.2 m/s, energy and exergy efficiencies of DAFSC were severely reduced up to 30 % and 51 %, respectively. Furthermore, higher ambient air temperature and relative humidity can boost up thermal efficiency of collector up to 14 % while the role of ambient air temperature, solely, at constant value of other affecting parameters was quite minor.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113409"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141293","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-01-13DOI: 10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113401
M. Pawłowski , M. Maciaszek , P. Zabierowski , P. Tsoulka , N. Barreau , M. Igalson
We present a comprehensive study of photoluminescence spectra of the CuGaSe2 (CGS) thin films, with a focus on the influence of variation in the copper content on optical transitions involving deep defects. The CGS samples investigated here were grown via the three-stage co-evaporation method, and exhibited varying [Cu]/([Cu]+[Ga]) ratios of 1.01, 0.98, and 0.92. We analyzed only the part of the spectrum below 1.3 eV, and carefully considered the interference effects in the analysis. Two prominent peaks were identified in this low-energy region. The first peak (A), located at 0.98 eV, was present in all samples, regardless of their stoichiometry. The second peak (B) at 1.12 eV emerged exclusively in Cu-poor samples, indicating its dependence on copper stoichiometry. Based on an analysis of the PL spectra, ab initio calculations, and literature data, peaks were tentatively assigned to donor-acceptor radiative recombination involving native defects. We proposed two alternative models to explain the nature of peak A at 0.98 eV. The first model assumed a nonintuitive recombination mechanism due to the VSe charge state change by capturing a hole located on VCu. In the second model, we proposed a transition between a deep donor GaCu(2+/+) and a deep acceptor, which is probably CuGa(0/-). Peak B at 1.12 eV, within both models, is explained as a recombination between a deep donor, i.e. a substitutional defect GaCu (2+/+), and a shallow acceptor VCu.
{"title":"Deep defect levels in CuGaSe2 investigated with photoluminescence","authors":"M. Pawłowski , M. Maciaszek , P. Zabierowski , P. Tsoulka , N. Barreau , M. Igalson","doi":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113401","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113401","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We present a comprehensive study of photoluminescence spectra of the CuGaSe<sub>2</sub> (CGS) thin films, with a focus on the influence of variation in the copper content on optical transitions involving deep defects. The CGS samples investigated here were grown via the three-stage co-evaporation method, and exhibited varying [Cu]/([Cu]+[Ga]) ratios of 1.01, 0.98, and 0.92. We analyzed only the part of the spectrum below 1.3 eV, and carefully considered the interference effects in the analysis. Two prominent peaks were identified in this low-energy region. The first peak (A), located at 0.98 eV, was present in all samples, regardless of their stoichiometry. The second peak (B) at 1.12 eV emerged exclusively in Cu-poor samples, indicating its dependence on copper stoichiometry. Based on an analysis of the PL spectra, <em>ab initio</em> calculations, and literature data, peaks were tentatively assigned to donor-acceptor radiative recombination involving native defects. We proposed two alternative models to explain the nature of peak A at 0.98 eV. The first model assumed a nonintuitive recombination mechanism due to the V<sub>Se</sub> charge state change by capturing a hole located on V<sub>Cu</sub>. In the second model, we proposed a transition between a deep donor Ga<sub>Cu</sub>(2+/+) and a deep acceptor, which is probably Cu<sub>Ga</sub>(0/-). Peak B at 1.12 eV, within both models, is explained as a recombination between a deep donor, i.e. a substitutional defect Ga<sub>Cu</sub> (2+/+), and a shallow acceptor V<sub>Cu</sub>.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":429,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 113401"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141195","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}