Optical and structural properties of d0 ion-doped silicate glasses for photovoltaic applications

Allsopp, Benjamin Brink; Christopoulou, Georgina; Brookfield, Adam; Forder, Susan D.; Bingham, Paul A.

doi:10.13036/17533562.59.4.003

Cited by 9 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 68 publications

(68 reference statements)

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“…Ion incorporation of Cu + by exchange has also shown promise 52 . In addition, recent research by some of the present authors 63,64 has demonstrated that a number of second‐ and third‐row transition metal dopants which adopt the d 0 electronic configuration in glasses (Ti 4+ , Zr 4+ , Hf 4+ , Nb 5+ , Ta 5+ , Mo 6+ and W 6+ ), 63 and also heavy metal cations such as Sb which exhibit far‐UV absorption bands from s → p electronic transitions 65 can also provide down‐shifting of UV photons in silicate glasses with negligible visible absorption 63 . Moreover, some of the present authors have also shown that adding Gd 3+ or other lanthanides as a co‐dopant with Bi 3+ can provide enhanced luminescence intensity compared with Bi 3+ doping alone 64…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 56%

“…In these calls, one of the key topics has been ‘Solar glasses and encapsulation materials’. The LIMES project addressed several aspects that are relevant for PV cover glasses and investigated optical, 63 mechanical and chemical properties of glass as well as novel thermal toughening methods 97 and also the addition of antireflective and self‐cleaning capabilities to the glass surface 98,99 . The glasses made in laboratory experiments were used for proof‐of‐concept studies by making the 70 × 70 mm PV modules discussed here.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Towards improved cover glasses for photovoltaic devices

Allsopp

Orman

Johnson

et al. 2020

Progress in Photovoltaics

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For the solar energy industry to increase its competitiveness, there is a global drive to lower the cost of solar-generated electricity. Photovoltaic (PV) module assembly is material-demanding, and the cover glass constitutes a significant proportion of the cost. Currently, 3-mm-thick glass is the predominant cover material for PV modules, accounting for 10%-25% of the total cost. Here, we review the state-of-the-art of cover glasses for PV modules and present our recent results for improvement of the glass. These improvements were demonstrated in terms of mechanical, chemical and optical properties by optimizing the glass composition, including addition of novel dopants, to produce cover glasses that can provide (i) enhanced UV protection of polymeric PV module components, potentially increasing module service lifetimes; (ii) re-emission of a proportion of the absorbed UV photon energy as visible photons capable of being absorbed by the solar cells, thereby increasing PV module efficiencies and (iii) successful laboratory-scale demonstration of proof of concept, with increases of 1%-6% in I sc and 1%-8% in I pm. Improvements in both chemical and crack resistance of the cover glass were also achieved through modest chemical reformulation, highlighting what may be achievable within existing manufacturing technology constraints. K E Y W O R D S chemical properties, cover glass, mechanical properties, optical properties, photoluminescence, PV modules, strengthening of glass 1 | INTRODUCTION Solar energy is often seen as the ultimate renewable energy because of the abundance of solar irradiation available for solar energy generation. In only 90 min, the Earth receives enough energy from the sun to provide its entire annual energy requirements. 1 Chapin, Fuller and Pearson invented the first practical photovoltaic (PV) cell in 1954, 2 and since the year 2000, installed PV capacity has experienced an almost exponential growth. 3 The installed PV capacity can be regulated politically but that is largely achieved on a national level and may be subject to change within just a few years. The growth of the solar energy market has been driven by the reduction of costs. For solar or any other renewable energy source, it has been a necessity to compete on an economical level (i.e., reaching so-called grid parity), and

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 56%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Towards improved cover glasses for photovoltaic devices

Allsopp

Orman

Johnson

et al. 2020

Progress in Photovoltaics

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“…In the case of cover glass for PV modules, the trend has been to use low-iron glass to increase transmitted light (Deubener et al, 2009). A drawback to this type of glass is that a larger amount of high-energy UV radiation is transmitted, which is harmful to the encapsulation material EVA that is used in most PV modules today (Allsopp et al, 2018). When UV radiation below 350 nm reaches the PV module, both the semiconductor material (Osterwald et al, 2003) and the laminate (Kuitche et al, 2014;Oliveira et al, 2018) are degraded.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transparent TiO2 and ZnO Thin Films on Glass for UV Protection of PV Modules

Johansson¹,

Peralta²,

Jonson³

et al. 2019

Front. Mater.

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Failure of PV modules frequently occurs as a result of degradation of their encapsulation material by destructive UV radiation. Both the life expectancy and efficiency of PV modules can be improved by reducing the transmittance of the destructive UV radiation through the cover glass without compromising the transmittance in the visible wavelength region. In addition, if the absorbed UV photons can be down-shifted to wavelengths that can be more efficiently converted to electrical energy, an additional increase of the PV efficiency could be achieved. In this study we have investigated transparent ZnO and TiO 2 thin films deposited by spray pyrolysis on soda lime silicate float glass as functional layers on PV cover glass. The optical bandgap, UV-cutoff, UV-Vis transmittance, reflectivity (total and diffuse) and photoluminescence have been determined. The ZnO coating shifted the optical bandgap to longer wavelengths, resulting in a reduction of the transmittance of destructive UV radiation by up to ∼85%. Distinct photoluminescence peaks at 377 nm and at 640 nm were observed for one of the ZnO samples. The TiO 2 coated glasses also showed an increased UV cutoff, which resulted in a reduction of transmittance of destructive UV radiation by up to 75%. However, no photoluminescence peaks could be observed from the TiO 2 films with 325 nm excitation laser, which can be explained by the fact that only indirect interband transitions are accessible at this excitation wavelength. Deposition of both ZnO and TiO 2 coatings resulted in a reduction of the transmitted light convertible by PV modules, by up to 12.3 and 21.8%, respectively. The implication of the results is discussed in terms of lifetime expectancy and efficiency of PV modules.

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“…With the increased optical, chemical and mechanical properties of the glasses developed, the use of thinner glass front sheets is enabled, reducing the weight and cost of PV modules. This has been exploited through a patent application [1] and a publication [2]. 28 Two main bodies of work were completed focussing on d 0 cations comprising transition metal oxides of titanium, zirconium, hafnium, niobium, tantalum, molybdenum and tungsten outlined in Chapter 4.…”

Section: List Of Tablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Separation of these charge carriers before they are able to recombine 4. Transportation of the charge carriers through electrical contacts and movement through a circuit to generate work A photon of energy equal to or slightly higher than the bandgap of the semiconductor is absorbed (1), exciting an electron to the conduction band (2). Due to the nature of semiconductor junctions, the electron can only move towards the negative terminal and the hole moves in the opposite direction (3).…”

Section: Photovoltaic Effectmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of d0 and s2 cations on optical properties of silicate glasses

Allsopp¹

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In partial fulfilment of its requirements for The Degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2 Declaration I hereby declare, that the thesis entitled 'Effects of d 0 and s 2 cations on optical properties of silicate glasses' is a result of my original work and investigation. None of the results presented in the manuscript have been lifted from any other sources and legitimate references are presented where necessary. Name:Signature:The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotations from it or information derived from it may be published without prior written consent of the author. 3 Published work and conferences Aspects of the work described in the thesis were published in:• Optical and structural properties of d 0 ion doped silicate glasses for photovoltaic applications. B.

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Optical and structural properties of d0 ion-doped silicate glasses for photovoltaic applications

Cited by 9 publications

References 68 publications

Towards improved cover glasses for photovoltaic devices

Towards improved cover glasses for photovoltaic devices

Transparent TiO2 and ZnO Thin Films on Glass for UV Protection of PV Modules

Effects of d0 and s2 cations on optical properties of silicate glasses

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