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Graphene/Carbon Nanotubes Application in Solar Cells

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A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Carbon Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2018) | Viewed by 38777

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Special Issue Editor

Prof. Joe Shapter

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Guest Editor

School of Chemical and Physical Sciences, Flinders University, Sturt Road, Bedford Park, South Australia 5042, Australia
Interests: macromolecular and materials chemistry; nanotechnology; physical chemistry; biosensors; carbon nanotubes; biological membranes

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The production of new methods to create the energy required for society is critically important for the future, especially in light of the continuously rising demand. Continuous use of fossil fuels would cause significant environmental issues. One important option is the development of new, so-called third generation, photovoltaic devices or solar cells. Some of the challenges for these devices include attaining high efficiencies that are stable for long times, making cells that have areas high enough to be commercially relevant, maximising deployment opportunities by making flexible, lightweight cells and developing reproducible production methods that will keep device costs low. Many of these challenges can be addressed with the use of nanocarbons, such as carbon nanotubes, graphene, graphene oxide or reduced graphene oxide. These materials have been used in every component of various devices and have shown many very promising results.

It is my pleasure to invite you to submit contributions that address some of the key challenges through the use of nanocrabons in the development of new photovoltaics devices, including, but not limited to, organophotovoltaic cells, perovskite cells and dye sensitised cells.

Prof. Dr. Joe Shapter
Guest Editor

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Keywords

photovoltaic devices
solar cells
carbon nanotubes
graphene
graphene oxide
reduced graphene oxide
flexible solar cells
lightweight solar cells
solar cell efficiency

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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11 pages, 6749 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Efficiency Improvement Using Molybdenum Disulphide Interlayers in Single-Wall Carbon Nanotube/Silicon Solar Cells

by Shaykha Alzahly, LePing Yu, Cameron J. Shearer, Christopher T. Gibson and Joseph G. Shapter

Materials 2018, 11(4), 639; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11040639 - 21 Apr 2018

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 4525

Abstract

Molybdenum disulphide (MoS₂) is one of the most studied and widely applied nanomaterials from the layered transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) semiconductor family. MoS₂ has a large carrier diffusion length and a high carrier mobility. Combining a layered structure of single-wall carbon nanotube (SWCNT) and MoS₂ with n-type silicon (n-Si) provided novel SWCNT/n-Si photovoltaic devices. The solar cell has a layered structure with Si covered first by a thin layer of MoS₂ flakes and then a SWCNT film. The films were examined using scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The MoS₂ flake thickness ranged from 5 to 90 nm while the nanosheet’s lateral dimensions size ranged up to 1 μm². This insertion of MoS₂ improved the photoconversion efficiency (PCE) of the SWCNT/n-Si solar cells by approximately a factor of 2. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene/Carbon Nanotubes Application in Solar Cells)

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11 pages, 5000 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

One-Step Preparation of Large Area Films of Oriented MoS₂ Nanoparticles on Multilayer Graphene and Its Electrocatalytic Activity for Hydrogen Evolution

by Jinbao He, Cristina Fernández, Ana Primo and Hermenegildo Garcia

Materials 2018, 11(1), 168; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11010168 - 22 Jan 2018

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4898

Abstract

MoS₂ is a promising material to replace Pt-based catalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), due to its excellent stability and high activity. In this work, MoS₂ nanoparticles supported on graphitic carbon (about 20 nm) with a preferential 002 facet orientation have been prepared by pyrolysis of alginic acid films on quartz containing adsorbed (NH₄)₂MoS₄ at 900 °C under Ar atmosphere. Although some variation of the electrocatalytic activity has been observed from batch to batch, the MoS₂ sample exhibited activity for HER (a potential onset between 0.2 and 0.3 V vs. SCE), depending on the concentrations of (NH₄)₂MoS₄ precursor used in the preparation process. The loading and particle size of MoS₂, which correlate with the amount of exposed active sites in the sample, are the main factors influencing the electrocatalytic activity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene/Carbon Nanotubes Application in Solar Cells)

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Review

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20 pages, 3215 KiB

Open AccessReview

Graphene- and Carbon-Nanotube-Based Transparent Electrodes for Semitransparent Solar Cells

by Kyu-Tae Lee, Dong Hyuk Park, Hyoung Won Baac and Seungyong Han

Materials 2018, 11(9), 1503; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11091503 - 22 Aug 2018

Cited by 35 | Viewed by 5865

Abstract

A substantial amount of attention has been paid to the development of transparent electrodes based on graphene and carbon nanotubes (CNTs), owing to their exceptional characteristics, such as mechanical and chemical stability, high carrier mobility, high optical transmittance, and high conductivity. This review highlights the latest works on semitransparent solar cells (SSCs) that exploit graphene- and CNT-based electrodes. Their prominent optoelectronic properties and various fabrication methods, which rely on laminated graphene/CNT, doped graphene/CNT, a hybrid graphene/metal grid, and a solution-processed graphene mesh, with applications in SSCs are described in detail. The current difficulties and prospects for future research are also discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene/Carbon Nanotubes Application in Solar Cells)

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34 pages, 9602 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperReview

Perovskites-Based Solar Cells: A Review of Recent Progress, Materials and Processing Methods

by Zhengqi Shi and Ahalapitiya H. Jayatissa

Materials 2018, 11(5), 729; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11050729 - 04 May 2018

Cited by 219 | Viewed by 13942

Abstract

With the rapid increase of efficiency up to 22.1% during the past few years, hybrid organic-inorganic metal halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have become a research “hot spot” for many solar cell researchers. The perovskite materials show various advantages such as long carrier diffusion lengths, widely-tunable band gap with great light absorption potential. The low-cost fabrication techniques together with the high efficiency makes PSCs comparable with Si-based solar cells. But the drawbacks such as device instability, J-V hysteresis and lead toxicity reduce the further improvement and the future commercialization of PSCs. This review begins with the discussion of crystal and electronic structures of perovskite based on recent research findings. An evolution of PSCs is also analyzed with a greater detail of each component, device structures, major device fabrication methods and the performance of PSCs acquired by each method. The following part of this review is the discussion of major barriers on the pathway for the commercialization of PSCs. The effects of crystal structure, fabrication temperature, moisture, oxygen and UV towards the stability of PSCs are discussed. The stability of other components in the PSCs are also discussed. The lead toxicity and updated research progress on lead replacement are reviewed to understand the sustainability issues of PSCs. The origin of J-V hysteresis is also briefly discussed. Finally, this review provides a roadmap on the current needs and future research directions to address the main issues of PSCs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene/Carbon Nanotubes Application in Solar Cells)

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4175 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperReview

The Impact of Graphene on the Fabrication of Thin Film Solar Cells: Current Status and Future Prospects

by Zhengqi Shi and Ahalapitiya H. Jayatissa

Materials 2018, 11(1), 36; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11010036 - 27 Dec 2017

Cited by 34 | Viewed by 8754

Abstract

Commercial solar cells have a power conversion efficiency (PCE) in the range of 10–22% with different light absorbers. Graphene, with demonstrated unique structural, physical, and electrical properties, is expected to bring the positive effects on the development of thin film solar cells. Investigations have been carried out to understand whether graphene can be used as a front and back contacts and active interfacial layer in solar cell fabrication. In this review, the current progress of this research is analyzed, starting from the graphene and graphene-based Schottky diode. Also, the discussion was focused on the progress of graphene-incorporated thin film solar cells that were fabricated with different light absorbers, in particular, the synthesis, fabrication, and characterization of devices. The effect of doping and layer thickness of graphene on PCE was also included. Currently, the PCE of graphene-incorporated bulk-heterojunction devices have enhanced in the range of 0.5–3%. However, device durability and cost-effectiveness are also the challenging factors for commercial production of graphene-incorporated solar cells. In addition to the application of graphene, graphene oxides have been also used in perovskite solar cells. The current needs and likely future investigations for graphene-incorporated solar cells are also discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene/Carbon Nanotubes Application in Solar Cells)

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