Year
2019
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
Intelligent Polymer Research Institute
Abstract
As the worlds demand for fossil fuels continues to grow more sources of energy need to be efficiently and sustainably harvested. Solar energy has the capability to generate large amounts of energy from renewable sources, which can be expected to sustain mankind from now and well into the future. The dye-sensitised solar cell (DSSC) is a photoelectrochemical solar cell that promises to provide cheap solar energy using non-toxic materials. However, the technology has proven difficult to scale-up and fabricate on a mass production scale. The back contact (BC) DSSC (BCDSSC) promises to overcome the limitations in DSSC scale-up as it enables the removal of the typically used glass electrodes, which are heavy, bulky and expensive and replaces them with flexible metallic electrodes. This fundamental change suddenly opens up the BCDSSC to a roll-to-roll manufacturing process and could result in a true low cost photovoltaic panel.
A novel BCDSSC was developed by researchers at the University of Wollongong in 2011. The design and its implications for DSSCs are showcased in this study. The studies carried out in this thesis were designed to explore various aspects of the BCDSSC and examine how varying the cell parameters and materials affect device performance.
Recommended Citation
Giorgio, Joseph, Development of New Device Structures for Dye Sensitised Solar Cells and their Applications, Doctor of Philosophy thesis, Intelligent Polymer Research Institute, University of Wollongong, 2019. https://ro.uow.edu.au/theses1/728
FoR codes (2008)
030304 Physical Chemistry of Materials, 090605 Photodetectors, Optical Sensors and Solar Cells, 0912 MATERIALS ENGINEERING, 1007 NANOTECHNOLOGY
Unless otherwise indicated, the views expressed in this thesis are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the University of Wollongong.