1
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Zhang Z, Baudy A, Testino A, Gubler L. Cathode Catalyst Layer Design in PEM Water Electrolysis toward Reduced Pt Loading and Hydrogen Crossover. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2024; 16. [PMID: 38652166 PMCID: PMC11082850 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.4c01827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2024] [Revised: 03/27/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024]
Abstract
Reducing the use of platinum group metals is crucial for the large-scale deployment of proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis systems. The optimization of the cathode catalyst layer and decrease of the cathode Pt loading are usually overlooked due to the predominant focus of research on the anode. However, given the close relationship between the rate of hydrogen permeation through the membrane in an operating cell and the local hydrogen concentration near the membrane-cathode interface, the structural design of the cathode catalyst layer is considered to be of pivotal importance for reducing H2 crossover, particularly in combination with the use of thin (≲50 μm) membranes. In this study, we have conducted a detailed investigation on the cathode structural parameters, covering the Pt wt % of the Pt/C electrocatalyst, the type of carbon support (Vulcan and high surface area carbon, HSAC), and the ionomer content, with a goal to reduce Pt loading to 0.025 mgPt/cm2 while minimizing the rate of cell hydrogen crossover. We found that the electrochemical performance is mainly influenced by the changes in the interfacial contact resistance due to variations in the cathode thickness. Both the Pt wt % in Pt/C and the ionomer content showed a positive correlation with the measured H2 in O2% in the anode outlet, whereas the Pt loading exhibited an opposite trend. The rate of hydrogen crossover was analyzed in relation to the calculated local volumetric current density within the cathode catalyst layer. Based on the obtained hydrogen mass transfer coefficient, a cathode catalyst layer comprising 40 wt % Pt on HSAC support with an ionomer-to-carbon (I/C) ratio of 0.35 was found to be an optimum configuration for achieving a low Pt loading of 0.025 mgPt/cm2 and a reduced rate of hydrogen crossover.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheyu Zhang
- Electrochemistry
Laboratory, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
| | - Axelle Baudy
- Electrochemistry
Laboratory, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
| | - Andrea Testino
- Laboratory
for Sustainable Energy Carriers and Processes, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
- STI
SMX-GE, École Polytechnique Fédérale
de Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Lorenz Gubler
- Electrochemistry
Laboratory, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
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2
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Akbari B, Gabrielli P, Sansavini G. Gas Flow Models and Computationally Efficient Methods for Energy Network Optimization. Ind Eng Chem Res 2024; 63:5901-5911. [PMID: 38586215 PMCID: PMC10996019 DOI: 10.1021/acs.iecr.3c04308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2023] [Revised: 03/01/2024] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/09/2024]
Abstract
The equations governing gas flow dynamics are computationally challenging for energy network optimization. This paper proposes an efficient solution procedure to enable tractability for an hourly resolved yearly decision horizon. The solution procedure deploys linear and second-order cone gas flow models alternatively based on the length-diameter ratio of pipes, achieving maximum efficiency within accuracy limits. Moreover, it addresses the computational complexity of bidirectional pipe flows by fixing the associated integer variables according to a preceding optimization with a static flow approximation. The procedure also precisely aggregates parallel and serial pipes for increased efficiency. Mathematical derivations and single-pipe analyses substantiate the model selection criterion. Network optimizations validate the accuracy, success rate, and scalability of the procedure, achieving up to 3.1% cost savings compared to static models, enhancing the success rate by a minimum of 96%, and boosting computational efficiency up to 3 orders of magnitude over full dynamic models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Behnam Akbari
- Institute of Energy and Process Engineering, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Paolo Gabrielli
- Institute of Energy and Process Engineering, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Giovanni Sansavini
- Institute of Energy and Process Engineering, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
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3
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de Vries A, Goloviznina K, Reiter M, Salanne M, Lukatskaya MR. Solvation-Tuned Photoacid as a Stable Light-Driven pH Switch for CO 2 Capture and Release. Chem Mater 2024; 36:1308-1317. [PMID: 38385123 PMCID: PMC10877570 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c02435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2023] [Revised: 11/22/2023] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
Photoacids are organic molecules that release protons under illumination, providing spatiotemporal control of the pH. Such light-driven pH switches offer the ability to cyclically alter the pH of the medium and are highly attractive for a wide variety of applications, including CO2 capture. Although photoacids such as protonated merocyanine can enable fully reversible pH cycling in water, they have a limited chemical stability against hydrolysis (<24 h). Moreover, these photoacids have low solubility, which limits the pH-switching ability in a buffered solution such as dissolved CO2. In this work, we introduce a simple pathway to dramatically increase stability and solubility of photoacids by tuning their solvation environment in binary solvent mixtures. We show that a preferential solvation of merocyanine by aprotic solvent molecules results in a 60% increase in pH modulation magnitude when compared to the behavior in pure water and can withstand stable cycling for >350 h. Our results suggest that a very high stability of merocyanine photoacids can be achieved in the right solvent mixtures, offering a way to bypass complex structural modifications of photoacid molecules and serving as the key milestone toward their application in a photodriven CO2 capture process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna de Vries
- Electrochemical
Energy Systems Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Kateryna Goloviznina
- Sorbonne
Université, CNRS, Physico-Chimie des Électrolytes et
Nanosystèmes Interfaciaux, PHENIX, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Manuel Reiter
- Electrochemical
Energy Systems Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Mathieu Salanne
- Sorbonne
Université, CNRS, Physico-Chimie des Électrolytes et
Nanosystèmes Interfaciaux, PHENIX, F-75005 Paris, France
- Institut
Universitaire de France (IUF), 75231 Paris, France
| | - Maria R. Lukatskaya
- Electrochemical
Energy Systems Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
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4
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Müller A, Paravicini L, Morzy J, Krause M, Casella J, Osenciat N, Futscher MH, Romanyuk YE. Influence of Au, Pt, and C Seed Layers on Lithium Nucleation Dynamics for Anode-Free Solid-State Batteries. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2024; 16:695-703. [PMID: 38124537 PMCID: PMC10788862 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.3c14693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2023] [Revised: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 12/08/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
In the concept of anode-free lithium-ion batteries, cells are manufactured with a bare anode current collector where the lithium metal anode is electrochemically formed from the lithium-containing cathode during the first charge cycle. While this concept has many attractive aspects from a manufacturing and energy density standpoint, stable plating and stripping remain challenging. We have investigated gold, platinum, and amorphous carbon as seed layers placed between the copper current collector and the lithium phosphorus oxynitride thin-film solid electrolyte. These layers guide lithium nucleation and improve the plating and stripping dynamics. All seed layers facilitate reversible lithium plating and stripping even at high current densities up to 8 mA cm-2. Of particular note is the amorphous carbon seed layer, which allowed a significant reduction in plating potential from 300 mV to as low as 50 mV. These results underscore the critical role of seed layers in improving the efficiency of anode-free solid-state batteries and open the door to simplified manufacturing of anode-free battery designs.
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Affiliation(s)
- André Müller
- Laboratory
for Thin Films and Photovoltaics, Empa—Swiss
Federal Laboratories for Materials
Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 129, Dübendorf CH-8600, Switzerland
| | - Luis Paravicini
- Laboratory
for Thin Films and Photovoltaics, Empa—Swiss
Federal Laboratories for Materials
Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 129, Dübendorf CH-8600, Switzerland
| | - Jȩdrzej Morzy
- Laboratory
for Thin Films and Photovoltaics, Empa—Swiss
Federal Laboratories for Materials
Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 129, Dübendorf CH-8600, Switzerland
| | - Maximilian Krause
- Laboratory
for Thin Films and Photovoltaics, Empa—Swiss
Federal Laboratories for Materials
Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 129, Dübendorf CH-8600, Switzerland
| | - Joel Casella
- Laboratory
for Thin Films and Photovoltaics, Empa—Swiss
Federal Laboratories for Materials
Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 129, Dübendorf CH-8600, Switzerland
| | - Nicolas Osenciat
- Laboratory
for Thin Films and Photovoltaics, Empa—Swiss
Federal Laboratories for Materials
Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 129, Dübendorf CH-8600, Switzerland
| | - Moritz H. Futscher
- Laboratory
for Thin Films and Photovoltaics, Empa—Swiss
Federal Laboratories for Materials
Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 129, Dübendorf CH-8600, Switzerland
| | - Yaroslav E. Romanyuk
- Laboratory
for Thin Films and Photovoltaics, Empa—Swiss
Federal Laboratories for Materials
Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 129, Dübendorf CH-8600, Switzerland
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5
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Moubarak E, Moosavi SM, Charalambous C, Garcia S, Smit B. A Robust Framework for Generating Adsorption Isotherms to Screen Materials for Carbon Capture. Ind Eng Chem Res 2023; 62:10252-10265. [PMID: 37425135 PMCID: PMC10326871 DOI: 10.1021/acs.iecr.3c01358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2023] [Revised: 06/06/2023] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
To rank the performance of materials for a given carbon capture process, we rely on pure component isotherms from which we predict the mixture isotherms. For screening a large number of materials, we also increasingly rely on isotherms predicted from molecular simulations. In particular, for such screening studies, it is important that the procedures to generate the data are accurate, reliable, and robust. In this work, we develop an efficient and automated workflow for a meticulous sampling of pure component isotherms. The workflow was tested on a set of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and proved to be reliable given different guest molecules. We show that the coupling of our workflow with the Clausius-Clapeyron relation saves CPU time, yet enables us to accurately predict pure component isotherms at the temperatures of interest, starting from a reference isotherm at a given temperature. We also show that one can accurately predict the CO2 and N2 mixture isotherms using ideal adsorbed solution theory (IAST). In particular, we show that IAST is a more reliable numerical tool to predict binary adsorption uptakes for a range of pressures, temperatures, and compositions, as it does not rely on the fitting of experimental data, which typically needs to be done with analytical models such as dual-site Langmuir (DSL). This makes IAST a more suitable and general technique to bridge the gap between adsorption (raw) data and process modeling. To demonstrate this point, we show that the ranking of materials, for a standard three-step temperature swing adsorption (TSA) process, can be significantly different depending on the thermodynamic method used to predict binary adsorption data. We show that, for the design of processes that capture CO2 from low concentration (0.4%) streams, the commonly used methodology to predict mixture isotherms incorrectly assigns up to 33% of the materials as top-performing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elias Moubarak
- Laboratory
of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie
Chimiques, École Polytechnique Fédérale
de Lausanne (EPFL), Rue de l’Industrie 17, CH-1951 Sion, Valais, Switzerland
| | - Seyed Mohamad Moosavi
- Laboratory
of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie
Chimiques, École Polytechnique Fédérale
de Lausanne (EPFL), Rue de l’Industrie 17, CH-1951 Sion, Valais, Switzerland
- Department
of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3E5, Canada
| | - Charithea Charalambous
- The
Research Centre for Carbon Solutions (RCCS), School of Engineering
and Physical Sciences, Heriot-Watt University, EH14 4AS Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Susana Garcia
- The
Research Centre for Carbon Solutions (RCCS), School of Engineering
and Physical Sciences, Heriot-Watt University, EH14 4AS Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Berend Smit
- Laboratory
of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie
Chimiques, École Polytechnique Fédérale
de Lausanne (EPFL), Rue de l’Industrie 17, CH-1951 Sion, Valais, Switzerland
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6
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Jablonka K, Rosen AS, Krishnapriyan AS, Smit B. An Ecosystem for Digital Reticular Chemistry. ACS Cent Sci 2023; 9:563-581. [PMID: 37122448 PMCID: PMC10141625 DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.2c01177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
The vastness of the materials design space makes it impractical to explore using traditional brute-force methods, particularly in reticular chemistry. However, machine learning has shown promise in expediting and guiding materials design. Despite numerous successful applications of machine learning to reticular materials, progress in the field has stagnated, possibly because digital chemistry is more an art than a science and its limited accessibility to inexperienced researchers. To address this issue, we present mofdscribe, a software ecosystem tailored to novice and seasoned digital chemists that streamlines the ideation, modeling, and publication process. Though optimized for reticular chemistry, our tools are versatile and can be used in nonreticular materials research. We believe that mofdscribe will enable a more reliable, efficient, and comparable field of digital chemistry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin
Maik Jablonka
- Laboratory of molecular simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Rue de l’Industrie 17, CH-1951 Sion, Switzerland
| | - Andrew S. Rosen
- Department of Materials
Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Materials Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Aditi S. Krishnapriyan
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Department of Electrical Engineering and
Computer Science, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Computational
Research Division, Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Berend Smit
- Laboratory of molecular simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Rue de l’Industrie 17, CH-1951 Sion, Switzerland
- E-mail:
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7
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Lund A, Manohara GV, Song AY, Jablonka KM, Ireland CP, Cheah LA, Smit B, Garcia S, Reimer JA. Characterization of Chemisorbed Species and Active Adsorption Sites in Mg-Al Mixed Metal Oxides for High-Temperature CO 2 Capture. Chem Mater 2022; 34:3893-3901. [PMID: 35573112 PMCID: PMC9097159 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.1c03101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2021] [Revised: 03/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Mg-Al mixed metal oxides (MMOs), derived from the decomposition of layered double hydroxides (LDHs), have been purposed as adsorbents for CO2 capture of industrial plant emissions. To aid in the design and optimization of these materials for CO2 capture at 200 °C, we have used a combination of solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (ssNMR) and density functional theory (DFT) to characterize the CO2 gas sorption products and determine the various sorption sites in Mg-Al MMOs. A comparison of the DFT cluster calculations with the observed 13C chemical shifts of the chemisorbed products indicates that mono- and bidentate carbonates are formed at the Mg-O sites with adjacent Al substitution of an Mg atom, while the bicarbonates are formed at Mg-OH sites without adjacent Al substitution. Quantitative 13C NMR shows an increase in the relative amount of strongly basic sites, where the monodentate carbonate product is formed, with increasing Al/Mg molar ratios in the MMOs. This detailed understanding of the various basic Mg-O sites presented in MMOs and the formation of the carbonate, bidentate carbonate, and bicarbonate chemisorbed species yields new insights into the mechanism of CO2 adsorption at 200 °C, which can further aid in the design and capture capacity optimization of the materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alicia Lund
- Materials
Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Department
of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - G. V. Manohara
- Research
Center for Carbon Solutions (RCCS), School of Engineering and Physical
Sciences, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh EH14 4AS, U.K.
| | - Ah-Young Song
- Materials
Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Department
of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Kevin Maik Jablonka
- Laboratory
of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut
des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, École Polytechnique
Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Rue de l’Industrie 17, Sion CH-1951, Switzerland
| | - Christopher P. Ireland
- Laboratory
of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut
des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, École Polytechnique
Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Rue de l’Industrie 17, Sion CH-1951, Switzerland
| | - Li Anne Cheah
- Research
Center for Carbon Solutions (RCCS), School of Engineering and Physical
Sciences, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh EH14 4AS, U.K.
| | - Berend Smit
- Laboratory
of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut
des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, École Polytechnique
Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Rue de l’Industrie 17, Sion CH-1951, Switzerland
| | - Susana Garcia
- Research
Center for Carbon Solutions (RCCS), School of Engineering and Physical
Sciences, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh EH14 4AS, U.K.
| | - Jeffrey A. Reimer
- Materials
Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Department
of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
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8
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Morisset A, Famprikis T, Haug FJ, Ingenito A, Ballif C, Bannenberg LJ. In Situ Reflectometry and Diffraction Investigation of the Multiscale Structure of p-Type Polysilicon Passivating Contacts for c-Si Solar Cells. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2022; 14:16413-16423. [PMID: 35357122 PMCID: PMC9011350 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.2c01225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The integration of passivating contacts based on a highly doped polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) layer on top of a thin silicon oxide (SiOx) layer has been identified as the next step to further increase the conversion efficiency of current mainstream crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar cells. However, the interrelation between the final properties of poly-Si/SiOx contacts and their fabrication process has not yet been fully unraveled, which is mostly due to the challenge of characterizing thin-film stacks with features in the nanometric range. Here, we apply in situ X-ray reflectometry and diffraction to investigate the multiscale (1 Å-100 nm) structural evolution of poly-Si contacts during annealing up to 900 °C. This allows us to quantify the densification and thinning of the poly-Si layer during annealing as well as to monitor the disruption of the thin SiOx layer at high temperature >800 °C. Moreover, results obtained on a broader range of thermal profiles, including firing with dwell times of a few seconds, emphasize the impact of high thermal budgets on poly-Si contacts' final properties and thus the importance of ensuring a good control of such high-temperature processes when fabricating c-Si solar cells integrating such passivating contacts. Overall, this study demonstrates the robustness of combining different X-ray elastic scattering techniques (here XRR and GIXRD), which present the unique advantage of being rapid, nondestructive, and applicable on a large sample area, to unravel the multiscale structural evolution of poly-Si contacts in situ during high-temperature processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Audrey Morisset
- Photovoltaics
and Thin Film Electronics Laboratory, Institute of Electrical and
Microengineering (IEM), Ecole Polytechnique
Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Maladière 71b, 2002 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Theodosios Famprikis
- Department
of Radiation Science and Technology, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 15, 2629JB Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Franz-Josef Haug
- Photovoltaics
and Thin Film Electronics Laboratory, Institute of Electrical and
Microengineering (IEM), Ecole Polytechnique
Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Maladière 71b, 2002 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Andrea Ingenito
- Sustainable
Energy Center, CSEM, Rue Jaquet-Droz 1, Neuchâtel, 2002, Switzerland
| | - Christophe Ballif
- Photovoltaics
and Thin Film Electronics Laboratory, Institute of Electrical and
Microengineering (IEM), Ecole Polytechnique
Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Maladière 71b, 2002 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
- Sustainable
Energy Center, CSEM, Rue Jaquet-Droz 1, Neuchâtel, 2002, Switzerland
| | - Lars J. Bannenberg
- Department
of Radiation Science and Technology, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 15, 2629JB Delft, The Netherlands
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9
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Tennyson E, Frohna K, Drake WK, Sahli F, Chien-Jen Yang T, Fu F, Werner J, Chosy C, Bowman AR, Doherty TAS, Jeangros Q, Ballif C, Stranks SD. Multimodal Microscale Imaging of Textured Perovskite-Silicon Tandem Solar Cells. ACS Energy Lett 2021; 6:2293-2304. [PMID: 34307879 PMCID: PMC8291767 DOI: 10.1021/acsenergylett.1c00568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/14/2021] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
Halide perovskite/crystalline silicon (c-Si) tandem solar cells promise power conversion efficiencies beyond the limits of single-junction cells. However, the local light-matter interactions of the perovskite material embedded in this pyramidal multijunction configuration, and the effect on device performance, are not well understood. Here, we characterize the microscale optoelectronic properties of the perovskite semiconductor deposited on different c-Si texturing schemes. We find a strong spatial and spectral dependence of the photoluminescence (PL) on the geometrical surface constructs, which dominates the underlying grain-to-grain PL variation found in halide perovskite films. The PL response is dependent upon the texturing design, with larger pyramids inducing distinct PL spectra for valleys and pyramids, an effect which is mitigated with small pyramids. Further, optimized quasi-Fermi level splittings and PL quantum efficiencies occur when the c-Si large pyramids have had a secondary smoothing etch. Our results suggest that a holistic optimization of the texturing is required to maximize light in- and out-coupling of both absorber layers and there is a fine balance between the optimal geometrical configuration and optoelectronic performance that will guide future device designs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth
M. Tennyson
- Cavendish
Laboratory, University of Cambridge, 19 JJ Thomson Avenue, Cambridge CB3 0HE, U.K.
| | - Kyle Frohna
- Cavendish
Laboratory, University of Cambridge, 19 JJ Thomson Avenue, Cambridge CB3 0HE, U.K.
| | - William K. Drake
- Cavendish
Laboratory, University of Cambridge, 19 JJ Thomson Avenue, Cambridge CB3 0HE, U.K.
| | - Florent Sahli
- École
Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Photovoltaics and Thin-Film Electronics Laboratory, Neuchatel 2002, CH, Switzerland
| | - Terry Chien-Jen Yang
- École
Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Photovoltaics and Thin-Film Electronics Laboratory, Neuchatel 2002, CH, Switzerland
| | - Fan Fu
- École
Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Photovoltaics and Thin-Film Electronics Laboratory, Neuchatel 2002, CH, Switzerland
| | - Jérémie Werner
- École
Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Photovoltaics and Thin-Film Electronics Laboratory, Neuchatel 2002, CH, Switzerland
| | - Cullen Chosy
- Department
of Chemical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
| | - Alan R. Bowman
- Cavendish
Laboratory, University of Cambridge, 19 JJ Thomson Avenue, Cambridge CB3 0HE, U.K.
| | - Tiarnan A. S. Doherty
- Cavendish
Laboratory, University of Cambridge, 19 JJ Thomson Avenue, Cambridge CB3 0HE, U.K.
| | - Quentin Jeangros
- École
Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Photovoltaics and Thin-Film Electronics Laboratory, Neuchatel 2002, CH, Switzerland
| | - Christophe Ballif
- École
Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Photovoltaics and Thin-Film Electronics Laboratory, Neuchatel 2002, CH, Switzerland
| | - Samuel D. Stranks
- Cavendish
Laboratory, University of Cambridge, 19 JJ Thomson Avenue, Cambridge CB3 0HE, U.K.
- Department
of Chemical Engineering & Biotechnology, University of Cambridge, Philippa Fawcett Drive, Cambridge CB3 0AS, U.K.
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