Coffee can enhance the energy of solar cells
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Scientists Wang Rui and Xue Jingjing of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Solargiga Energy found that caffeine can help create a promising alternative to traditional solar cells, a product that is efficient in converting light energy higher. Their research, published in the Joule magazine on April 25, may enable this low-cost renewable energy technology to compete with silicon solar cells in the market.
The idea started with a joke while drinking coffee in the morning. One day, when we were discussing perovskite solar cells, our colleague Wang Rui said, if we need coffee to replenish energy, what about perovskite? Do they need coffee to improve performance? Xue Jingjing recalled that she was a PhD student in the research group of Professor Yang Yang (transliteration) in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles.
This casual comment reminded the research team that the caffeine in coffee is an alkaloid compound that contains a molecular structure that can interact with the precursor of the perovskite material-this compound has a specific crystal structure, in A type of solar cell forms a light collection layer. Previously, attempts to improve the thermal stability of these solar cells included the introduction of compounds such as dimethyl sulfoxide to enhance the perovskite layer, but researchers have struggled to improve the efficiency and long-term stability of the cells. No one has tried caffeine.
Realizing what they might have discovered, the team put the coffee aside and began to investigate further. They added caffeine to the perovskite layer of 40 solar cells, and used infrared spectroscopy (using infrared radiation to identify compounds) to determine that caffeine has successfully combined with the material.
Through further infrared spectroscopy testing, they found that the carbonyl group in caffeine (a carbon atom and an oxygen double bond) interacted with the lead ions in the layer to form a molecular lock. This interaction increases the minimum energy required for the perovskite thin film reaction and increases the efficiency of solar cells from 17% to over 20%. When the material is heated, molecular locks will continue to occur, which helps prevent the decomposition of heat.
This photo shows the researchers using caffeine-enhanced solar cells. (Rui Wang and Jingjing Xue)
"We were surprised by the results," said Wang, who is also a PhD student in the Yang Research Group at the University of California, Los Angeles. In our first attempt to add caffeine, our perovskite solar cell has reached the highest efficiency we achieved in the paper.
However, although caffeine seems to significantly improve the performance of using perovskite batteries to absorb sunlight, researchers do not think it will be useful for other types of solar cells. Caffeine's unique molecular structure only allows it to interact with the perovskite precursor, which may give this solar cell variety an advantage in the market. Perovskite solar cells already have the advantage of being cheaper and more flexible than silicon cells. They are also easier to manufacture—perovskite batteries can be made from solution-based precursors instead of solid crystal ingots. With the deepening of research, Wang believes that caffeine can promote the large-scale production of perovskite solar cells.
Caffeine can help perovskites achieve high crystallinity, low defects and good stability, he said. This means that it may play a role in the large-scale production of perovskite solar cells.
In order to continue to improve the efficiency and stability of solar cells, the research team plans to further study the chemical structure of perovskite materials containing caffeine and determine the best protective materials for perovskites.
(Originally from: Daily Science China New Energy Network Synthesis)
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