WO2013050373A1 - Module de cellules solaires à colorant, composant pour un module de cellules solaires à colorant et son procédé de fabrication - Google Patents

Module de cellules solaires à colorant, composant pour un module de cellules solaires à colorant et son procédé de fabrication Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2013050373A1
WO2013050373A1 PCT/EP2012/069472 EP2012069472W WO2013050373A1 WO 2013050373 A1 WO2013050373 A1 WO 2013050373A1 EP 2012069472 W EP2012069472 W EP 2012069472W WO 2013050373 A1 WO2013050373 A1 WO 2013050373A1
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Prior art keywords
dye
sensitised solar
solar cell
conductive region
substrate
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PCT/EP2012/069472
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English (en)
Inventor
Guang-Kai JENG
Greg John JACKSON
Gerard Bree
Mazhar Bari
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Solarprint Limited
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Publication of WO2013050373A1 publication Critical patent/WO2013050373A1/fr

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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01G—CAPACITORS; CAPACITORS, RECTIFIERS, DETECTORS, SWITCHING DEVICES, LIGHT-SENSITIVE OR TEMPERATURE-SENSITIVE DEVICES OF THE ELECTROLYTIC TYPE
    • H01G9/00—Electrolytic capacitors, rectifiers, detectors, switching devices, light-sensitive or temperature-sensitive devices; Processes of their manufacture
    • H01G9/20—Light-sensitive devices
    • H01G9/2068—Panels or arrays of photoelectrochemical cells, e.g. photovoltaic modules based on photoelectrochemical cells
    • H01G9/2081—Serial interconnection of cells
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01G—CAPACITORS; CAPACITORS, RECTIFIERS, DETECTORS, SWITCHING DEVICES, LIGHT-SENSITIVE OR TEMPERATURE-SENSITIVE DEVICES OF THE ELECTROLYTIC TYPE
    • H01G9/00—Electrolytic capacitors, rectifiers, detectors, switching devices, light-sensitive or temperature-sensitive devices; Processes of their manufacture
    • H01G9/20—Light-sensitive devices
    • H01G9/2027—Light-sensitive devices comprising an oxide semiconductor electrode
    • H01G9/2031—Light-sensitive devices comprising an oxide semiconductor electrode comprising titanium oxide, e.g. TiO2
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01G—CAPACITORS; CAPACITORS, RECTIFIERS, DETECTORS, SWITCHING DEVICES, LIGHT-SENSITIVE OR TEMPERATURE-SENSITIVE DEVICES OF THE ELECTROLYTIC TYPE
    • H01G9/00—Electrolytic capacitors, rectifiers, detectors, switching devices, light-sensitive or temperature-sensitive devices; Processes of their manufacture
    • H01G9/20—Light-sensitive devices
    • H01G9/2059—Light-sensitive devices comprising an organic dye as the active light absorbing material, e.g. adsorbed on an electrode or dissolved in solution
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H10—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H10K—ORGANIC ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES
    • H10K71/00—Manufacture or treatment specially adapted for the organic devices covered by this subclass
    • H10K71/60—Forming conductive regions or layers, e.g. electrodes
    • H10K71/611—Forming conductive regions or layers, e.g. electrodes using printing deposition, e.g. ink jet printing
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
    • Y02E10/00—Energy generation through renewable energy sources
    • Y02E10/50—Photovoltaic [PV] energy
    • Y02E10/542—Dye sensitized solar cells
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02P—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS
    • Y02P70/00—Climate change mitigation technologies in the production process for final industrial or consumer products
    • Y02P70/50—Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product

Definitions

  • This invention relates to a dye-sensitised solar cell module, a component for a dye-sensitised solar cell module, a method of manufacturing a dye-sensitised solar cell module and a method of manufacturing a component for a dye-sensitised solar cell module.
  • the invention covers device designs and structures for various applications of a dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC).
  • DSSC dye sensitized solar cell
  • the first structure is a DSSC module consisting of series-connected cells operating optimally under high light intensity.
  • the second structure is a DSSC module with series-connected cells operating optimally under low light intensity.
  • the third structure is a DSSC module with parallel connected cells operating optimally under high light intensity.
  • the fourth structure is a DSSC module with parallel connected cells operating optimally under low light intensity.
  • a mesoporous oxide layer composed of a network of metal oxide (for example Ti0 2 ) nano particles that have been sintered together to establish electronic conduction across the photoelectrode, also called the working electrode (WE).
  • WE working electrode
  • the film thickness is 10-15 ⁇ and the nano particle size 10-30nm in diameter.
  • the porosity is 50-60%.
  • the mesoporous layer is deposited on a transparent conducting oxide (TCO) on a glass or other substrate.
  • TCO transparent conducting oxide
  • the most commonly used substrate is glass coated with fluorine-doped tin-oxide (FTO). Attached to the surface of the mesoporous oxide layer is a monolayer of the charge- transfer dye sensitizer.
  • Photo-excitation of the dye sensitizer results in the injection of electrons into the conduction band of the oxide, and leaves the dye in its oxidized state.
  • the dye is restored to its ground state by electron transfer from an electrolyte, which is typically an organic solvent containing the iodide/tri-iodide redox system.
  • the regeneration of the sensitizer dye by iodide is therefore by intercepting the recapture of the conduction band electron.
  • the I 3" ions formed by oxidation of ⁇ diffuse a short distance ( ⁇ 50 ⁇ ) through the electrolyte to the cathode, also referred to as the counter electrode (CE).
  • the CE is coated with a thin layer of platinum catalyst, where the regenerative cycle is completed by electron transfer to reduce I 3" to .
  • the circuit is completed via the load applied externally between the CE and WE.
  • the potential generated under illumination corresponds to the difference between the Fermi level of the electron in the mesoporous layer and the redox potential of the electrolyte.
  • V oc open circuit voltage
  • the WE can be formed by printing the nano-porous metal oxide paste, for example Ti0 2 , on FTO coated transparent conductive glass substrate.
  • doctor blade printing or screen printing are among the most common printing techniques. After Ti0 2 is printed, dried and sintered at approximately 500°C, the WE is then soaked in a dye bath which contains the dye sensitizer. Ruthenium based dye is commonly used.
  • the CE is formed by depositing a thin layer of platinum as catalyst on FTO coated glass, by using vacuum sputtering, electro-plating , electro-less plating, or printing followed by sintering at approximately 450°C.
  • the electrodes are then assembled and a fluid-tight barrier around the cells is formed using a sealant between the two electrode plates. UV curable sealant or thermoplastic films are commonly used as the sealing material.
  • a controlled cell gap which is the distance between the two electrodes, can be established by choosing a correct forming process of the sealing material. After the cell is assembled and sealed, electrolyte is then introduced into each cell void through a pre-drilled hole on the counter electrode glass substrate. After filling, the holes are then sealed.
  • Electrons can thus be regenerated via the sensitizer from the electrolyte iodide/tri-iodide redox system and supplied to the WE from the CE repeatedly.
  • the device generates electrical power from light without suffering any permanent chemical transformation.
  • a DSSC behaves very similarly to other types of photovoltaics, giving a typical l-V curve shown as in Figure 3.
  • DSSC photovoltaic has many unique characteristics. The output potential changes little across a very wide range of light intensity. Even at low light down to 200 lux, the ⁇ ⁇ remains as high as 0.5V, and remains at 0.45V even at 50 lux. Therefore proper design of DSSC cells and modules can enable an electronic device to charge and function properly under very dim light.
  • a carbon material, working as the conductive bridge is printed on the working electrode of a cell, which is connected to the counter electrode of the adjacent cell through an extension part which is also made of a carbon material.
  • the said extension part links between two opposite electrodes of two separate cells in a vertical direction. Isolation of the cells is required at the FTO layer; this can be implemented by e.g., laser scribing.
  • a DSSC module of cells connected in series can be constructed.
  • the advantage of the art is that carbon is robust to chemical corrosion and should survive well in the DSSC internal environment over its service life.
  • a thick silver wall is printed to connect vertically between the cathode of one cell and the anode of the next cell, and also ensuring cells are isolated at the FTO layer on each electrode.
  • the silver wall is inserted to replace the carbon interconnect. Since it is expected that silver will be corroded by electrolyte, a compartment must be constructed for protection. This is made by creating a vertical wall made of glass frit, printed and sintered, either side of the silver wall. The glass frit walls act as a barrier to separate the silver from the electrolyte. A few drawbacks exist with this structure.
  • the inter-cell compartment takes up a significant space, which reduces the DSSC active area for light absorption and therefore limits the overall efficiency.
  • a dye-sensitised solar cell module comprising: a first substrate having for each of a plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells a first conductive region; a second substrate having for each of a plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells a second conductive region, wherein the second substrate opposes the first substrate such that for each of said plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells said first conductive region at least partly overlaps only the second conductive region of that dye-sensitised solar cell; and an electrical
  • interconnect that is between the first substrate and the second substrate and electrically connects the first conductive region of one of said plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells to the second conductive region of an adjacent dye-sensitised solar cell.
  • a component for a dye-sensitised solar cell module comprising: a substrate having for each of a plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells a conductive region; and an electrical connector corresponding to each conductive region, wherein a part of the electrical connector is formed on the conductive region of the substrate and a part of the electrical connector is formed on the substrate outside of the conductive region.
  • a method of manufacturing a component for a dye- sensitised solar cell module comprising: providing a substrate having for each of a plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells a conductive region; and forming on the substrate an electrical connector corresponding to each conductive region such that a part of the electrical connector is formed on the conductive region of the substrate and a part of the electrical connector is formed on the substrate outside of the conductive region.
  • a method of manufacturing a dye-sensitised solar cell module comprising: providing a first substrate having for each of a plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells a first conductive region; providing a second substrate having for each of a plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells a second conductive region; arranging the second substrate to oppose the first substrate such that for each of said plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells said first conductive region at least partly overlaps only the second conductive region of that dye-sensitised solar cell; and forming an electrical interconnect that is between the first substrate and the second substrate and electrically connects the first conductive region of one of said plurality of dye-sensitised solar cells to the second conductive region of an adjacent dye- sensitised solar cell.
  • Figure 1 shows the working principle of a DSSC
  • Figure 2 is an exploded view of a standard DSSC with the breakdown of its component layers;
  • Figure 3 is a typical l-V curve of a single cell DSSC device.
  • a typical cell delivers 0.7-0.75V open circuit voltage, with the output current proportional to the cell dimension;
  • Figure 4 shows the efficiency drop of a DSSC due to increasing series resistance under different light intensities
  • Figure 5 shows the electrical configuration of a series connected DSSC module in schematic.
  • the output potential of the module is the product of the number of cells by the potential of the single cell, while the ideal output current is that of the single cell;
  • Figure 6 shows the series connected DSSC module optimized for high light intensity
  • top and side elevations are shown from cross section cut lines A-A and C-C respectively;
  • Figure 7 is magnified view of the circled part in Figure 6, showing one of the solder links between the silver pad of the cathode and anode of sequential cells;
  • Figure 8 is the anode-cathode pair of Figure 7 (solder link not shown in the figure) projected in isometric view;
  • Figure 9 is the series connected DSSC module optimized for low light intensity applications. The top and side elevations are shown from cross section cut lines A-A and C-C. The major difference from the design drawn in Figure 6 is the omission of the silver lines travelling vertically up the design; Figure 10 is magnified view of the circled part in Figure 9, showing one of the solder links between the silver pad of the cathode and anode of sequential cells;
  • Figure 1 1 is the anode-cathode pair of Figure 10 (solder link not shown in the figure) projected in isometric view;
  • Figure 12 shows the electrical configuration of a parallel connected DSSC module in schematic.
  • the module output current is the product of the number of cells by the current of the single cell, while the ideal output potential is that of a single cell;
  • Figure 13 shows the parallel connected DSSC module optimized for high light intensity applications. The top and side elevations are shown from cross section cut lines A-A and C-C respectively; Figure 14 is the magnified view of the circled part in Figure 13;
  • Figure 15 shows the parallel connected DSSC module optimized for low light intensity applications.
  • the top and side elevations are shown from cross section cut lines A-A and C-C respectively.
  • the major difference from the design drawn in Figure 13 is the omission of the silver lines travelling vertically up the design; and
  • Figure 16 is the magnified view of the circled part in Figure 15.
  • DSSC photovoltaic has many unique characteristics. The output potential changes little across a very wide range of light intensity. Even at low light down to 200 lux, the V oc remains as high as 0.5V, and remains at 0.45V even at 50 lux. Therefore proper design of DSSC cells and modules can enable an electronic device to charge and function properly under very dim light.
  • AM1 .5g refers to a standardized illumination brightness and spectrum equivalent to "1 sun", which may be generated by a solar simulator containing xenon lamp.
  • AM1.5g intensity is 1000 watt/m 2 or approximately 100,000 lux.
  • Both AM1 .5g (watt/m 2 ) and lux are familiar units used to express light intensity in two standard spectrums, and the scales will be used interchangeably in the following text for purpose of clarity and/or comparison.
  • Other than AM1 .5g (assumed 100,000 lux) light intensities from 17000 lux down to 200 lux are created by using white LED for test purposes.
  • Figure 4 is a chart of DSSC cell conversion efficiency (performance) vs. series resistance across the cell under various lighting conditions, with the plots normalized to a typical low series resistance of 10 ⁇ .
  • the equation below explains the relationship between power and current flow through a DSSC (or indeed any electrical circuit) when it encounters series resistance:
  • the photocurrent in a DSSC is proportional to light intensity.
  • the device will encounter a high efficiency loss for a given series resistance in high light condition; therefore low series resistance is desirable to mitigate this loss.
  • the higher the light intensity the more the series resistance should be reduced to get optimal operation.
  • efficiency loss even for large series resistances under low light conditions becomes insignificant, and therefore low series resistance is not critical.
  • Figure 4 shows that a cell with the series resistance below 50 ⁇ experiences less than 5% performance drop loss up to 5000 lux light conditions. Whereas, the same cell encounters over 50% power loss when exposed to AM1.5g. Using this theoretical basis, cells and modules can be designed with different structures for different end applications, allowing reduction in the complexity of manufacturing costs giving possible economic and ecological benefits.
  • Power from DSSC can be used for the charging of electronic devices, and is especially useful for wireless and portable equipment, for example mobile phones.
  • the DSSC module is preferably be in lightweight and small in size, as well as capable of providing the sufficient electrical power and voltage to meet the device requirements.
  • a single-cell DSSC have a limited output potential, as stated previously 0.7-0.75V at AM1.5g, which is too low to drive most commercial electronic products.
  • a mobile phone for example, requires 3-5 volts to charge its battery.
  • One solution is to use a DC-DC step-up converter (e.g., Linear Technology's LTC3108) to boost the potential output. However, this sacrifices output current and a significant portion of power is typically lost in conversion efficiency.
  • a semiconductor cell is made of a single piece of solid-state substrate, which has its cathode and anode reside on the opposite sides of the same substrate. In that case it is simple to link the topside of one cell to the underside of the next cell using such as a wire bond to make a series module.
  • the situation in a DSSC is different.
  • the CE and WE are built on two different substrates, and critically there is a liquid electrolyte in the cell-gap between the two electrodes. Furthermore that electrolyte is often corrosive to many groups of metals.
  • the present invention aims to address these issues with a simple design, resulting in higher reliability for the DSSC module over its service life.
  • the present invention uses an approach that is different from the approach disclosed in US 2010/0078060 A1 .
  • silver lines are printed and sintered onto one of the electrodes (e.g. the working electrode). These silver lines may be protected by printing glass frits or UV sealant on top of them followed by a sintering or curing process. The silver line is completely protected by the overcoat (glass frits or UV sealant) within the cell. The interconnections of the silver lines only happen outside the sealed part of the cells by extending the silver lines out of the sealant. Note the printed sealant to protect the silver lines is different from the sealant to seal the cells. With this design, the difficulties and challenges of delicate interconnections as well as the risk of cell failures can be avoided.
  • Embodiment 1 Series Connected DSSC Module for High Light Conditions
  • This structure is a configuration for a series connected DSSC module in high light conditions.
  • Each substrate comprises a plurality of conductive regions, which may be formed of Fto, for example.
  • FTO of 7-15 ⁇ /sq sheet resistance was used in our DSSC.
  • FTO the transparent conductive material on which the functional materials are printed (e.g., mesoporous Ti0 2 photo- electrode on WE, or Pt on CE), provides transparency to light and reasonable good electrical conductance between function electrodes and interconnects, is carefully scribed to isolate cells on the printed functional electrodes (WE or CE) and the Ti0 2 or Pt layers deposited within the a defined pattern. Electrical isolation is especially important between series connected cells because each of these cells may have a slightly different potential.
  • FTO used anywhere in this invention can be replaced by other types of transparent conductive films such as ITO, AZO,
  • At least one electrical charge carrier is disposed (e.g. printed) on the substrate (e.g. FTO coated glass surface) along each cell for both WE and CE.
  • the at least one electrical charge carrier may comprise flat, silver lines. They are dried and sintered and then protected by a protector, for example by printing glass frit paste, or alternatively, a UV curable sealant, over to completely cover them without creating any voids. Glass frit paste is dried and sintered in a high temperature oven between 400 and 550°C. If used instead, UV-curable sealant can be cured by cross linking using a UV lamp at room temperature with a power density of 50-1000 mW/cm 2 . Silver has the lowest known resistance of all metals.
  • the series resistance can be as low as 0.01 ⁇ / cm, and, if necessary, it can be further reduced by increasing the line width, the line heights or by increasing the number of lines.
  • Glass frit or UV- curable sealant protect the silver against electrolyte corrosion. For high light conditions, these lines are printed to create a low series-resistance path for charge carrying as an alternative to the FTO layer.
  • a single line or dual line silver of 0.2-0.4mm wide and 10-15 microns in height is sufficient for most applications. It should be noticed that printed glass frit or UV curable sealant protection has a benefit over wall protection as described in one of the prior arts.
  • the protected layer is printed directly and sealed in conformal contour the silver line surface and is mechanically integrated to the substrate. It has a strong resistance and robustness and therefore provides a very good protection against external impact. Our test results prove it survives in electrolyte over 1000 hours at 80°C in 85% relative humidity without any resistance increase.
  • the electrodes are then ready for assembly.
  • the module is assembled by laminating the two electrodes together with a proper sealing and curing process, establishing a number of isolated cell voids. This can be carried out using hot-melt thermoplastic sealant (e.g., Surlyn ® provided by DuPont) or a UV curable sealant.
  • the electrolyte is then introduced into each cell through a pre-drilled hole. The primary purpose of the seal is to confine the electrolyte within each cell, isolating it from the external environment for the length of the module's service life.
  • a three dimensional connection circuit may be implemented, involving connection between two electrodes in two different planes (i.e in the 'z' direction to the 'x-y' plane of the electrode plates).
  • the anode of one cell on one plane may be connected to the cathode of another cell which is located on another plane.
  • This connection is duplicated for all adjacent anode-cathode pairs so that a multiplication of the cell potential to achieve the desired module potential can be obtained.
  • An electrical connector for example a silver lead from the anode extends itself to and aligns vertically with a lead from the cathode of the next cell, and vice versa.
  • Two metal leads can then be joined together in vertical direction by an electrical conductor by, for example, a junction method such as soldering.
  • a junction method such as soldering.
  • the schematic drawing in Figure 6 shows the top view and two side views seeing from cross section cut in lines A-A and line C-C of this interconnection.
  • the circled part on the upper left is magnified in Figure 7 for clarity, which shows the solder links between one of the cathodes and the anode next to it.
  • the silver lead pair (without solder) is further projected in a three-dimensional view in Figure 8.
  • solder paste can be printed or dispensed and dried on the silver pad before assembly. Alternatively, solder balls, bumps or preforms can be picked and placed between the printed silver leads. The solder is then caused to reflow by heating the module at a moderate temperature. Depending the composition of solder, reflow temperature can range between 100°C and 270°C. A lower temperature solder is preferred to reduce the risk of damage to the cell. Alternatively, to avoid direct heating, the solder reflow can be achieved by IR lamp, LED or laser or inductive heating methods, optionally assisted by ultrasonic treatment. The same junction method between cathode-anode pairs is duplicated on every cathode-anode pair.
  • junction made by solder reflow is only one of the methods to achieve this electrical interconnect.
  • An alternative junction method can be made by printing a thick silver pad on each side and subsequently bringing them into intimate contact in the lamination process during assembly, or alternatively by a mechanical clamping technique.
  • any of a large group of conductive materials such as copper, nickel, tin or carbon can be used for this interconnect pad.
  • the pad can be made by any method from (and not limited to) screen- printing, electroplating or electro-less plating, sputtering or evaporation shadowed by a mask or followed by lithograph and patterning.
  • Embodiment 2 Series Connected DSSC Module for Low Light Intensity
  • this structure simplifies the manufacturing steps and reduces material usage. Also, since a metal line is completely opaque and completely blocks all the light, and glass frit and UV curable sealant are also partially opaque and block a large part of the light, therefore, when metal lines are required on the working electrode, a significant amount of incoming light will be blocked. By removing them, extra space is created on the electrode plane, allowing the proportion of active to inactive area for light absorption to be increased on the DSSC module. The overall module efficiency can thereby be increased. Additionally, subtraction of the metal lines can not only reduce the number of processing steps but also reduces the risk of corrosion defects, improving the production yield rate.
  • This design is especially useful for very dim to medium light conditions, for example indoor light harvesting for wireless sensor applications.
  • the available light intensity to drive a simple indoor sensor can be as low as 50 lux.
  • a single cell of a DSSC module, cell dimensions 60 mm x 10 mm will produce typically 0.45V V oc and 0.055 mA short circuit current.
  • the series resistance which is essentially equivalent to the series resistance of the FTO coated glass, is around 50 ⁇ .
  • voltage drop due to series resistance is only 0.055mA * 50 ⁇ , which is approximately 2.75 mV. At 0.45V, this results in only 0.6% loss.
  • Parallel Connected DSSC Modules As described above, small, series-connected DSSC modules find good application in charging portable devices and wireless sensors. However, not all applications require a high output voltage from a small single module. Where space is not a critical issue, internal series interconnection is not required. Instead, series connections for potential multiplication can be made between modules rather than cells. Applications such as (and not limited to) BIPV or solar roofs for automobiles fall into this category.
  • a parallel module of electrical configuration shown in Figure 12 is preferred to a series-connected module as it reduces the complexity of manufacturing, maximizing yield and allowing room to maximize module efficiency. The following two structures described are parallel-connected module designs for the above mentioned applications.
  • Embodiment 3 Parallel connected module for high light conditions
  • a parallel connected DSSC module for high light intensity applications is described in this embodiment.
  • silver lines are printed onto the FTO coated glass substrate for both WE and CE. They are dried and sintered and then protected by printing glass frit paste, or alternatively, a UV curable sealant, over to completely cover them without creating any voids. Glass frit paste is dried and sintered in a high temperature oven between 400 and 550°C. If used instead, UV- curable sealant can be cured by cross linking using a UV lamp at room temperature with a power density of 50-1000 mW/cm 2 . The electrodes are then ready for assembly.
  • the module is assembled by laminating two electrodes together using a proper sealing and curing process., with thermoplastic sealant (e.g., Surlyn ® provided by DuPont) or a UV curable sealant.
  • Figure 13 shows the top view and two side views of this embodiment. One is the cross section viewed from line A-A; the other is from line C-C. The circled part on upper left corner is magnified as shown in Figure 14, where silver leads on each anode and cathode pair as well as the substrate spacing are indicated.
  • the silver lines are present to reduce the cell series resistance by providing an alternative, low resistance path to the FTO.
  • Glass frit or UV-curable sealant protects the silver against electrolyte corrosion.
  • a single line or dual line silver of 0.2-0.4mm wide and 10-15 microns in height is sufficient for most applications.
  • the number of cells on the module is not critical, because the multiplication of voltage is not required. Therefore, within a fixed area, the number of cells and the geometry of each cell can be tailored to maximize the total power output and therefore increase the overall module efficiency. This can be realized by simultaneously reducing the number of the cells and by increasing the cell width to the limits allowed by the production process. By doing so, the proportion of active to inactive area can be increased as the number of spaces between the cells is reduced.
  • Embodiment 4 Parallel interconnected module for low light condition
  • a design for a parallel connected DSSC module for low light intensity applications is disclosed in this embodiment. Since we have shown that the higher series resistance of the FTO layer is acceptable as a charge path under low light conditions, it is acceptable to remove this component. With the subtraction of the silver lines, the protective layer, (glass frit or UV curable resin) and many drying, sintering and curing processes are completely removed from the previous embodiment. The silver extensions (leads) and interconnect pad are the only printed metal parts at both ends of the cells. These are required to assure low contact resistance to the FTO and good interconnection between cells.
  • the schematic drawing in Figure 15 shows the top view and two side views seeing from cross section cut in lines A-A and line C-C of this interconnection. The circled part on upper left corner is magnified as shown in Figure 16, where silver leads on each anode and cathode pair as well as the substrate spacing are indicated.
  • this structure simplifies the manufacturing steps and reduces material usage. Also, since a metal line is completely opaque and completely blocks all the light, and glass frit and UV curable sealant are also partially opaque and block a large part of the light, therefore, when metal lines are required on the working electrode, a significant amount of incoming light will be blocked. By removing them, extra space is created on the electrode plane, allowing the proportion of active to inactive area for light absorption to be increased on the DSSC module. The overall module efficiency can thereby be increased. Additionally, subtraction of the metal lines can not only reduce the number of processing steps but also reduces the risk of corrosion defects, improving the production yield rate. With the silver lines removed, this parallel-module is useful from very dim light (i.e.
  • the number of cells on the module is not critical, because the multiplication of voltage is not required. Therefore, within a fixed area, the number of cells and the geometry of each cell can be tailored to maximize the total power output and therefore increase the overall module efficiency. This can be realized by simultaneously reducing the number of the cells and by increasing the cell width to the limits allowed by the production process. By doing so, the proportion of active to inactive area can be increased as the number of spaces between the cells is reduced. Finally, by printing a horizontal silver strip across the common electrodes on each cell, a module of optimized output can be produced.

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  • Hybrid Cells (AREA)

Abstract

La présente invention concerne un module de cellule solaire à colorant comportant un premier substrat, un second substrat et une plaque d'interconnexion électrique. Le premier substrat comprend pour chacune d'une pluralité de cellules solaires à colorant une première région conductrice. Le second substrat comprend pour chacune de la pluralité de cellules solaires à colorant une seconde région conductrice. Le second substrat est en face du premier substrat de sorte que pour chacune de ladite pluralité de cellules solaires à colorant, ladite première région conductrice chevauche au moins en partie la seconde région conductrice de cette cellule solaire à colorant. La plaque d'interconnexion électrique est interposée entre le premier substrat et le second substrat. La plaque d'interconnexion électrique assure la connexion électrique entre la première région conductrice d'une de ladite pluralité de cellules solaires à colorant et la seconde région conductrice d'une cellule solaire à colorant adjacente.
PCT/EP2012/069472 2011-10-03 2012-10-02 Module de cellules solaires à colorant, composant pour un module de cellules solaires à colorant et son procédé de fabrication WO2013050373A1 (fr)

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GB1117112.1 2011-10-03
GBGB1117112.1A GB201117112D0 (en) 2011-10-03 2011-10-03 Dye-sensitised solar cell module, component for a dye-sensitised solar cell module and method of manufacturing the same

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WO2013050373A1 true WO2013050373A1 (fr) 2013-04-11

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WO2015006020A1 (fr) * 2013-07-12 2015-01-15 Electric Film Llc Cellules photovoltaïques, systèmes, composants et procédés

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WO2015006020A1 (fr) * 2013-07-12 2015-01-15 Electric Film Llc Cellules photovoltaïques, systèmes, composants et procédés

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TW201324815A (zh) 2013-06-16

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