A Luminescent Solar Concentrator (LSC) greenhouse and an identical control greenhouse were constructed with photovoltaic (PV) cells attached to the roof panels of both structures. The placement and types of PV cells used in the LSC panels were varied for performance comparisons. Solar power generation was monitored continuously for one year, with leading LSC panels exhibiting a 37% increase in power production compared to the reference. The 22.3 m2 greenhouse was projected to generate a total of 1342 kWh per year, or 57.4 kWh/m2 if it were composed solely of the leading panel of Criss Cross panel design. The LSC panels showed no signs of degradation throughout the trial demonstrating the material's robustness in field conditions.

A Monte Carlo hopping model was developed to simulate electron and hole transport in nanocrystalline PbSe films. Transport is carried out as a series of thermally activated hopping events between neighboring sites on a cubic lattice. Each site, representing an individual nanocrystal, is assigned a size-dependent electronic structure, and the effects of particle size, charging, interparticle coupling, and energetic disorder on electron and hole mobilities were investigated. Results of simulated field-effect measurements confirm that electron mobilities and conductivities at constant carrier densities increase with particle diameter by an order of magnitude up to 5 nm and begin to decrease above 6 nm. We find that as particle size increases, fewer hops are required to traverse the same distance and that site energy disorder significantly inhibits transport in films composed of smaller nanoparticles. The dip in mobilities and conductivities at larger particle sizes can be explained by a decrease in tunneling amplitudes and by charging penalties that are incurred more frequently when carriers are confined to fewer, larger nanoparticles. Using a nearly identical set of parameter values as the electron simulations, hole mobility simulations confirm measurements that increase monotonically with particle size over two orders of magnitude.

Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) fabricated with transparent host materials and fluorescent organic dyes are cost effective and versatile tools for solar power production. In this study, the first flexible, front-facing LSCs utilizing Lumogen F Red 305 (LR305) and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) were demonstrated. Bulk-doped devices, fabricated with dye evenly distributed throughout the waveguide, were optimized for light gain with LR305 concentrations between 0.075 and 0.175 g/l. Thin-film devices, fabricated with a thin layer of luminescent material applied to the bottom side of the waveguide, were optimized between 0.5 and 0.75 g/l. The bulk-doped and thin-film devices produced light gains of 1.86 and 1.89, respectively, demonstrating that flexible designs can be developed without sacrificing power production. Bulk-doped devices proved to be less effective than thin-film devices at collecting direct light due to the placement of fluorescent dyes above the front-facing solar cell. Thin-film devices demonstrated less light collection than bulk-doped devices further from the device centers possibly due to quenching and self-absorption losses at higher dye concentrations. Light collection was minimally impacted by moderate bending in both LSC designs, suggesting that flexible, front-facing devices could be effectively deployed on curved and uneven surfaces. Finally, optical measurements of the LSC waveguides suggest that they could support plant growth underneath. Similar designs could be developed for applications in agricultural settings.

1. INTRODUCTION This paper presents a comprehensive survey of the latest international publications (2012–2017) regarding innovative and environmentally sustainable materials that reduce the production of pollutants. It is recognised that world construction is responsible for substantial amounts of harmful emissions. In particular, the survey collected data on new sustainable solutions and innovative materials, such as cement, wood, glass and ceramics that are essential to minimize the environmental impact of buildings on the ecosystem and to reduce the consumption of natural resources. Therefore, the paper's intent is to give an overview of the current state of the art and research in the field of bio-building, gathering information on the environmental impacts of these innovative materials and listing the benefits that can be obtained with their use. The findings of this study support the growing importance of green building as a component of the whole construction market and provide a benchmark against which to measure future changes in the industry over time.

Experimental and theoretical investigation of the electronic structure of Cu2O and CuO thin films on Cu(110) using x-ray photoelectron and absorption spectroscopy Chalcocite (Cu 2 S) has been deposited via pulsed chemical vapor deposition (PCVD) into a porous TiO 2 matrix using hydrogen sulfide and a metal-organic precursor. The precursor used is similar to the more common Cu(hfac)(tmvs) precursor, but it is fluorine free and exhibits increased thermal stability. The simultaneous exposure of the substrate to the copper precursor and hydrogen sulfide resulted in nonuniform Cu 2 S films with a temperature independent deposition rate implying gas phase reaction kinetics. The exposure of mesoporous TiO 2 and planar ZnO to alternating cycles of the copper precursor and hydrogen sulfide resulted in a PCVD film that penetrated fully into the porous TiO 2 layer with a constant deposition rate of 0.08 nm/cycle over a temperature range of 150-400 C. The chalcocite (Cu 2 S) stoichiometry was confirmed with extended x-ray absorption fine structure measurements (EXAFS) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Calculations of the EXAFS spectrum for different Cu x S phases show that EXAFS is sensitive to the different phase stoichiometries. Optical absorption measurements of CVD thin films using photothermal deflection spectroscopy show the presence of a metallic copper-poor phase for gas phase nucleated films less than 100 nm thick and a copper-rich semiconducting phase for thicknesses greater than 100 nm with a direct band gap of 1.8 eV and an indirect bandgap of 1.2 eV.