Final Report Summary - ADIOS-RU (Advanced Design and Industrialization of Organic Sensitizers without Ruthenium for Dye Sensitised Solar cells)
Executive Summary:
Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) are a promising new generation of photovoltaic which have demonstrated relatively high performance compared to silicon-based solar cells in many non-ideal light environments such as dim, diffuse and indoor light. They are on the verge of wide-scale commercialization but still face challenging issues to solve on long-term stability, materials cost and ability to recycle. Many of these issues are rooted in the liquid phase of the cell, the dye / electrolyte pairing. In particular, the reliance on the rare earth Ruthenium as the active constituent of the dye has strong implications on the raw material cost and could potentially be difficult to source in the long term.
Project Context and Objectives:
Climate change and the decreasing availability of fossil fuels require society to move towards more sustainable, renewable energy sources, and to increase and introduce energy efficiency measures. Photovoltaics (PV) address these issues by harvesting energy from available solar and artificial light. Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSC) are an important emerging PV technology in this field, being highly efficient under dim, diffuse and indoor light where conventional solar cells struggle to operate.
In order to maximize the performance of DSSC to increase their commercial attractiveness as a product, novel cheap, stable and highly efficient dyes must be produced. This project will be performed by three SME partners in the DSSC value chain: SolarPrint (Ireland), a DSSC manufacturer; Solaronix (Switzerland), a supplier of DSSC cells and basic components including ionic liquid electrolytes; and KaïronKem (France), who specialise in the scaling of complex organic syntheses for various industries. The two RTD performers, CEA in France and ICIQ in Spain, are at the forefront of research into novel materials for solar energy conversion and the development of DSSC.
The project will deliver a novel organic dye/electrolyte combination for use in DSSC that will employ a cheaper, more stable and more environmentally friendly dye than the Ruthenium-based industrial standard, N719. By combining the production knowledge of the three SME partners, organic synthesis by CEA, analysis and electrolyte development by ICIQ, a complete set of materials within a tailored cell will be designed for volume production. Each SME will then be in position to exploit their part of the DSSC value chain, gaining greater penetration into their respective business areas and generating sustained employment in the companies.
Concepts
Sunlight is the most abundant of all carbon-neutral energy sources. Therefore, photovoltaic technologies, which convert solar energy to electricity, are of extreme importance in increasing the worldwide level of renewable energy generation, reducing reliance on conventional fuels and their associated carbon cost. Since 2006, photovoltaic cell production has quintupled and this upward trend is expected to continue.
Conventional silicon photovoltaics are now a well-established technology approaching maturity. Efficiency under a standard AM1.5 spectrum has a theoretical (Schottley Quiesser) limit of 33.7%; production modules have reached a record of 22% and development efforts are now focussed on external modifications to the cell such as concentrators and tandem structures. However, the quoted efficiency of these silicon based cells is only true in strong, direct sunlight and therefore in many situations the actual conversion efficiency, and therefore electrical power generated, is much lower.
In silicon solar cells, the silicon semiconductor is in charge of both the creation and the transport of the photogenerated charges. DSSC is non-silicon PV technology. Since Professor M. Graetzel and Dr. B. O’Regan working at EPFL made their original breakthrough in the photoelectric conversion efficiency of DSSCs, academic and commercial interest in DSSC has gradually increased, developing the following features:
• Higher performance relative to silicon photovoltaics artificial light conditions, i.e. in indoor light
• Higher total power output compared to conventional silicon over the course of an average day due to the ability to convert dim and diffuse light
• Potential for low cost in high volume manufacturing due to the use of abundant materials
• Form factor advantage as both flexible (metal or plastic) and rigid cell constructions are possible
In addition, photovoltaics are presently exempt from European recycling of electronic waste (WEEE) and restriction of hazardous substance (RoHS) legislation, due to their current low contribution to the waste stream. There is a high risk this legislation will extend to PV in future, making other newer generation technologies such as CdTe (Cadmium Telluride) PV difficult to market, and adding high costs of WEEE recycling to conventional solar manufacturers. DSSC, with attention to the components used, has potential to avoid many of these costly issues.
The dye sensitizer is arguably the most important component of the DSSC. There are currently no fully commercially available DSSC modules in the marketplace, the cost of the dye is one of the limiting factors in producing cheap, market viable DSSCs. The stability of the dye/electrolyte combination is also a crucial factor in penetration into markets requiring warranted product lifetimes of longer than a few years.
The development of metal free organic dyes specifically for the fabrication of DSSC is expected to overcome several limitations of ruthenium based dyes, and the tailoring of electrolyte partner and DSSC structure to match the dye is crucial to achieving long term stability.
The first company to produce, using repeatable processes, DSSC with performance exceeding that of the major indoor photovoltaic competitor (that being Amorphous Silicon, generally produced in the Far East) and with proven long term stability will have access to a highly exploitable energy harvesting market (see section 3.2). Extending this to longer lifetimes (10-20 years) will open up the much larger markets of consumer electronics and eventually building integrated photovoltaics.
DSSC development in Europe, outside of academic and private research institutions, is limited to a few SMEs. Outside of Europe, it is known that major Japanese electronics companies have small teams developing the technology but they are unlikely to commercialize until they are assured a significant market size. Therefore SolarPrint, using the results of this project, is well placed to move into an early worldwide competitive stronghold within 1-2 years, with the benefit passed to the other SME partners through the supply chain.
Benefit to the SME Partners
SolarPrint’s projected capacity in the next 2 years is 324 000 DSSC units (25cm2/module) per annum in their facility in Dublin, with outsourced manufacture allowing a 1M units/annum production rate in 2015.
Following this project, we expect the developed materials to be integrated in parallel with production, with minimal modification to the production line. In 12 months following project completion, once the new product validation has been completed, these materials will be able to replace the present ruthenium based dye and electrolyte. Higher performance and increased long term stability extends the present commercial markets for DSSC and opens new avenues; therefore increased product sales and staffing requirement is anticipated.
Since no specific standards exist for performance and stability of DSSC, SolarPrint will apply their own test regimes at their facility which they have adapted from existing photovoltaic standards. SolarPrint are closely involved in the development of new standards for DSSC and will bring the results of this project into that workflow.
KaïronKem is one of the leading French custom organic synthesis supplier and producer of complex organic compounds, mainly for the pharmaceutical industries. Their objective is to expand their existing catalogue of compounds with the exclusive dye molecules developed in this project, gaining new markets primarily in DSSC photovoltaics, and secondarily in fluorescent labelling of biological materials and organic electronics.
By working with the RTD performers in the project, in particular CEA with their specialist development competence, under the structure of the scheme KaïronKem stand to gain very valuable formulations of organic dyes with a specific commercial purpose and a market-ready customer in SolarPrint, as well as learning know-how on the dye development and testing. KaïronKem then has the capability to scale up the synthesis for commercial production.
Solaronix has pioneered DSSC technology for over 15 years, making and supplying nano-TiO2 pastes, ruthenium sensitizers, ionic-liquid based and other electrolytes and various additives. They also produce solar simulation and light soaking test equipment using a proprietary lamp generating a solar-like spectrum. Through this project they aim to improve their catalogue of ionic liquids, gaining knowledge and materials from the collaboration with the RTD performers to produce unique formulations suitable for commercial DSSC in high volume production. They are also involved in several other collaborations including a large scale installation with EPFL that will benefit from the results.
As the exploitation partner for the ionic liquid based electrolyte results, Solaronix´s position in this developing market will be strengthened with a close relationship with SolarPrint as they commercialise DSSC containing organic dyes requiring these specific tailored solutions. Furthermore, the technical expertise gained from this project could well be transferrable to other challenging technologies outside of DSSC, enhancing Solaronix’s development in these areas.
Objectives of the ADIOS-Ru Project
This project will aim to develop organic, non-ruthenium based dyes that are:
• low-cost; target 50% projected volume production cost compared to N719 Ruthenium dye
• scalable in production; sufficient yield for volume production as validated by KaïronKem
• high light to energy conversion performance; comparable to N719 under both low light and AM1.5 conditions
• stable; a complete DSSC able to survive for 1000hrs without significant degradation under SolarPrint’s standard accelerated test conditions
The project will also necessarily identify and/or develop and test a partnering electrolyte and tune the cell configuration to make the complete cell.
In order to achieve this, the goals can be further broken down into:
RTD objectives
a) Identify synthetic routes appropriate for developing new organic dyes without rare elements
b) Determine and improve the electro-optical and stability properties of the new organic dye matched with a TiO2 photo-electrode
c) Match the new organic dyes with ionic liquid based electrolytes and improve the key electrolyte properties for a stable cell
d) Determine the optimum dye-uptake procedure for a given photo-electrode, and develop characterisation tools to analyse the process
e) Optimize of the thickness of the TiO2 photoelectrode, pore size and porosity factors to suit the dye
f) Improve expertise and leadership in the area of organic materials for hybrid photovoltaic technologies
Strategic SME objectives:
a) Gain access to high performance, low cost and stable organic dyes
b) Resolve compatibility and integration issues within DSSC for ionic liquid electrolytes
c) Address the issues of stability and lifetime for materials in DSSC, and the completed cell
d) Use characterisation tools for dye-uptake to progress from optimized laboratory processes (hours) to industrial dying processes (minutes)
e) Reduce the time to market for integration of new dyes and electrolytes into DSSC through greater knowledge and understanding of their development
f) Enable scaled manufacturing of both DSSC component materials and complete DSSC
g) Develop and contribute to transferrable standards for performance and stability testing for DSSC materials and products
h) Remove uncertainty in issues of toxicity from DSSC products
i) Build EU expertise, competitiveness and leadership in the area of printable DSSC technology
Project Results:
See attached file
Potential Impact:
The principle economic objective of the ADIOS-Ru project is to increase penetration of DSSC products into the PV marketplace. The project result, DSSC utilizing a novel organic dye/electrolyte combination, will result in a substantial reduction in the raw material cost per module unit, by up to 40%. Reducing DSSC manufacturing costs will both unlock new market opportunities for DSSC and allow the technology to challenge existing PV market sectors.
Since 2006, worldwide solar cell production has increased by 500% and this strong growth trend is expected to continue. Even in the more conservative projected growth scenarios, it is anticipated that global market will be 2.5 times its current size by 2015 .
The technology landscape of the photovoltaic market is often described by three generations. The marketplace is currently dominated by established first and second generation technologies. In this categorisation, DSSC is the leading emerging third generation technology.
One of the key technical challenges in realising DSSC’s commercial potential is in reducing the lifecycle cost of a DSSC module. The results of the ADIOS-Ru project will address this by removing dependence on Ruthenium dyes, while maintaining performance and improving stability. This will impact the following markets:
Indoor Applications:
The consortium strongly believes that the first DSSC products will be light-harvesting modules for indoor devices. For this industry, removing battery maintenance and electrical wiring from sensor and control devices is a key enabler . Figure 3 2 shows the projected market growth for these devices until 2015.
Any reduction in manufacturing cost will increase the size of the addressable target market in the indoor wireless device domain. A DSSC module unit cost at present makes it economically viable for 30% of this market, including temperature, light, CO2 and occupancy sensors. As an indication, reduction of manufacturing costs of 15% by combining results from this project would enable increase market penetration to 50% by expanding the sensor applications it is commercially and technically practical to be powered by DSSC. Applying this to projected market growth, incorporating the DSSC fractional cost within a typical wireless device, the ADIOS-Ru project will increase DSSC’s addressable market in this sector alone from €263 million to €438 million by 2016, an increase of 66%. Subsequently, further reduction in costs with higher performance will open the market for indoor charging of other low powered devices such as consumer electronics, medical and tracking devices. Market analysts predict that these segments will represent billion-euro opportunities in the medium term .
Outdoor Applications:
For PV used in outdoor applications, the industry unit cost is on a strong downward trajectory. The ADIOS-Ru project will help enable DSSC prices to move into a comparable range with the first and second generation technologies.
Industry forecasts indicate that annual revenues in for traditional outdoor PV technologies will approach $100 billion by 2015 . Given the unique characteristics of DSSC technology for harnessing light in non-ideal conditions, existing markets may be extended to create market-share for DSSC in Building Integrated PV (BIPV) and Automotive PV (APV). The ADIOS-Ru developments will firmly place the consortium SMEs as the leading European players for future exploitation of DSSC in these areas.
SolarPrint Market Impact
The project technical objectives beyond the state of the art will deliver a complete cell containing an organic dye / electrolyte combination, replacing the incumbent Ruthenium-based materials set and reducing the overall material cost. An analysis of the projected cost benefit on the materials base derived from SolarPrint’s bottom-up cost analysis, based on volume quotes from supply-chain partners. By decrease of the per-module cost of dye, electrolyte and TiO2 in the project result, an overall material cost reduction of 40% is forecast.
In addition to the materials cost benefit, the project objective of developing stable organic dyes with new anchoring functions will enable the reduction of the dye-soaking cycle time from 12 hours to less than 4 hours. Once production at scale commences, SolarPrint will realise a significant reduction in equipment, overhead and labour requirements in exercising this process step.
SolarPrint’s benefit from the project will therefore be a direct effect of expansion and increased penetration into the DSSC markets described above, enabled by these significant cost reductions.
Solaronix Market Impact
As DSSC market penetration increases and product sales rise, Solaronix will benefit from providing the ionic-liquid-based electrolytes developed within this project. Solaronix anticipates that collaboration with SolarPrint and supplying SolarPrint’s product scaling will significantly add to the growth of their business.
New knowledge gained from the project will also enable expansion and improvement ofSolaronix’ ionic-liquid-based electrolytes development and technology licensing activities. As a secondary effect, direct market growth is anticipated by exploitation of the ionic-liquid-based electrolytes into markets outside of DSSC, for example battery development, thereby expanding Solaronix’s business and product portfolio.
KaïronKem Market Impact
Similarly, KaïronKem will benefit from the sale of organic dyes to the expanding DSSC market, developed in the project specifically for production of DSSC. The new compounds developed will be produced exclusively by KaïronKem and will add strength to their building blocks and small molecules catalogue, helping them to expand their business in the emerging market of organic semi-conductive materials and photovoltaic components. The developed dyes will also find application in fluorescent labelling of biological materials, and with modification the materials and processes may be used in producing dyes for visual displays.
This project also presents KaïronKem a substantial opportunity to expand their knowhow in the field of organic dye production and development, learning from the leading academic developers in the field.
Social impact
• Quality of life and health and safety
This extension the PV application into new areas of technology by the development of DSSC will provide a renewable power source to off-grid consumer devices and ultimately to wider markets in non-ideal light environments. This is consistent with the objectives of the European Photovoltaic Technology Platform and EU policy on climate change, including the European Climate Change Programme (ECCP) and 2005 Legislation "Winning the Battle Against Global Climate Change".
Additionally, the application of energy harvesting for wireless sensors is strongly interrelated to energy efficiency and sustainable buildings. For much of Europe’s building stock, effective retro-fitted building energy management systems will only be possible using wireless devices where both the communications and power wiring are removed. The use of intelligent wireless networks with DSSC enabled temperature, humidity, indoor air quality (CO2) and occupancy sensors can result in 15-20% savings in energy usage . This is directly in line with 2007 EU Legislation “Limiting Global Climate Change to 2 degrees Celsius - The way ahead for 2020 and beyond”, in which energy efficiency in residential and commercial buildings is explicitly outlined as a target area for energy savings.
These building efficiency energy savings, and the future penetration of DSSC into BIPV, will decrease and divert energy reliance from conventional supply. Reduction in reliance on fossil fuels, as enshrined in the abovementioned EU legislation, as desirable for the quality of life for all Europe’s citizens. The redistribution of national and European energy generation will reduce the need for transport of energy (electricity or fuels) and increase the security of European energy supply.
• Improving employment prospect and level of skills in Europe
It cannot be understated how much the development of new organic dyes and electrolytes for DSSC will strengthen the position of the SME partners in the marketplace. Increased and new business will certainly translate in job creation for specialised and unspecialised workers, centred on the European labour market. Each of SolarPrint, KaironKem and Solaronix expect to employ at least two more staff in addition to their currently planned expansion rate as a direct result of the industrialisation of the project results.
All the SME partners and RTD performers work closely with academic institutions and are involved in the training and development of Europe’s brightest scientists and engineers. The results of the project will feed directly into skill development at Europe’s universities.
• Environmental impact.
Photovoltaics are a forerunner for replacing conventional carbon-based energy sources over time. DSSC will presents a lower cost option than PV on the market today, and will be applicable in situations where silicon-based panels cannot be deployed, making it an attractive development environmentally.
DSSC manufacturing is also advantageous compared to present PV technologies, as it:
- Is less energy intensive than silicon technologies, requiring significantly less energy to produce. Many of the layers are printable, with the greatest consumption being sintering of the oxide layers
- Non-toxic materials are used. The majority of raw chemicals are non-toxic and widely used in industry
Specifically for the ADIOS-Ru project, the organic replacement for Ruthenium based dyes virtually eliminates potential recycling issues with DSSC, reducing the lifecycle cost of the product.
Trans-national cooperation between industries and research institutions
The project objectives are relevant for the group of SMEs active in the field of DSSCs manufacturing and related components. All the SMEs involved in the project are highly motivated by the projected outcomes of this project, and will strongly benefit from mutual collaboration and cooperation with excellent European research centres.
The participation of three SMEs allows sharing of each organisation’s development risks, creating a wide basis for the commercial exploitation of results in Europe. In particular, the capability of the consortium to combine efforts in scaling production will be a strong competitive advantage.
Working in cooperation at a European scale is justified:
- By the fact that the SMEs have to compete in a demanding globalised market. In this situation cooperation is a vital tool to expand their expertise, develop capability and increase business
- By the research challenges that require advanced skills in critical scientific. Each SME has its own business and expertise but not the competency to tackle all the problems concerning the holistic development of the novel DSSC targeted. The SMEs in this consortium do not individually have the capability to invest suitable financial resources for all of scientific and industrial research required
- By the sharing of scientific and industrial risk
List of Websites:
not applicable as the website was hosted by bankrupted company
Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) are a promising new generation of photovoltaic which have demonstrated relatively high performance compared to silicon-based solar cells in many non-ideal light environments such as dim, diffuse and indoor light. They are on the verge of wide-scale commercialization but still face challenging issues to solve on long-term stability, materials cost and ability to recycle. Many of these issues are rooted in the liquid phase of the cell, the dye / electrolyte pairing. In particular, the reliance on the rare earth Ruthenium as the active constituent of the dye has strong implications on the raw material cost and could potentially be difficult to source in the long term.
Project Context and Objectives:
Climate change and the decreasing availability of fossil fuels require society to move towards more sustainable, renewable energy sources, and to increase and introduce energy efficiency measures. Photovoltaics (PV) address these issues by harvesting energy from available solar and artificial light. Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSC) are an important emerging PV technology in this field, being highly efficient under dim, diffuse and indoor light where conventional solar cells struggle to operate.
In order to maximize the performance of DSSC to increase their commercial attractiveness as a product, novel cheap, stable and highly efficient dyes must be produced. This project will be performed by three SME partners in the DSSC value chain: SolarPrint (Ireland), a DSSC manufacturer; Solaronix (Switzerland), a supplier of DSSC cells and basic components including ionic liquid electrolytes; and KaïronKem (France), who specialise in the scaling of complex organic syntheses for various industries. The two RTD performers, CEA in France and ICIQ in Spain, are at the forefront of research into novel materials for solar energy conversion and the development of DSSC.
The project will deliver a novel organic dye/electrolyte combination for use in DSSC that will employ a cheaper, more stable and more environmentally friendly dye than the Ruthenium-based industrial standard, N719. By combining the production knowledge of the three SME partners, organic synthesis by CEA, analysis and electrolyte development by ICIQ, a complete set of materials within a tailored cell will be designed for volume production. Each SME will then be in position to exploit their part of the DSSC value chain, gaining greater penetration into their respective business areas and generating sustained employment in the companies.
Concepts
Sunlight is the most abundant of all carbon-neutral energy sources. Therefore, photovoltaic technologies, which convert solar energy to electricity, are of extreme importance in increasing the worldwide level of renewable energy generation, reducing reliance on conventional fuels and their associated carbon cost. Since 2006, photovoltaic cell production has quintupled and this upward trend is expected to continue.
Conventional silicon photovoltaics are now a well-established technology approaching maturity. Efficiency under a standard AM1.5 spectrum has a theoretical (Schottley Quiesser) limit of 33.7%; production modules have reached a record of 22% and development efforts are now focussed on external modifications to the cell such as concentrators and tandem structures. However, the quoted efficiency of these silicon based cells is only true in strong, direct sunlight and therefore in many situations the actual conversion efficiency, and therefore electrical power generated, is much lower.
In silicon solar cells, the silicon semiconductor is in charge of both the creation and the transport of the photogenerated charges. DSSC is non-silicon PV technology. Since Professor M. Graetzel and Dr. B. O’Regan working at EPFL made their original breakthrough in the photoelectric conversion efficiency of DSSCs, academic and commercial interest in DSSC has gradually increased, developing the following features:
• Higher performance relative to silicon photovoltaics artificial light conditions, i.e. in indoor light
• Higher total power output compared to conventional silicon over the course of an average day due to the ability to convert dim and diffuse light
• Potential for low cost in high volume manufacturing due to the use of abundant materials
• Form factor advantage as both flexible (metal or plastic) and rigid cell constructions are possible
In addition, photovoltaics are presently exempt from European recycling of electronic waste (WEEE) and restriction of hazardous substance (RoHS) legislation, due to their current low contribution to the waste stream. There is a high risk this legislation will extend to PV in future, making other newer generation technologies such as CdTe (Cadmium Telluride) PV difficult to market, and adding high costs of WEEE recycling to conventional solar manufacturers. DSSC, with attention to the components used, has potential to avoid many of these costly issues.
The dye sensitizer is arguably the most important component of the DSSC. There are currently no fully commercially available DSSC modules in the marketplace, the cost of the dye is one of the limiting factors in producing cheap, market viable DSSCs. The stability of the dye/electrolyte combination is also a crucial factor in penetration into markets requiring warranted product lifetimes of longer than a few years.
The development of metal free organic dyes specifically for the fabrication of DSSC is expected to overcome several limitations of ruthenium based dyes, and the tailoring of electrolyte partner and DSSC structure to match the dye is crucial to achieving long term stability.
The first company to produce, using repeatable processes, DSSC with performance exceeding that of the major indoor photovoltaic competitor (that being Amorphous Silicon, generally produced in the Far East) and with proven long term stability will have access to a highly exploitable energy harvesting market (see section 3.2). Extending this to longer lifetimes (10-20 years) will open up the much larger markets of consumer electronics and eventually building integrated photovoltaics.
DSSC development in Europe, outside of academic and private research institutions, is limited to a few SMEs. Outside of Europe, it is known that major Japanese electronics companies have small teams developing the technology but they are unlikely to commercialize until they are assured a significant market size. Therefore SolarPrint, using the results of this project, is well placed to move into an early worldwide competitive stronghold within 1-2 years, with the benefit passed to the other SME partners through the supply chain.
Benefit to the SME Partners
SolarPrint’s projected capacity in the next 2 years is 324 000 DSSC units (25cm2/module) per annum in their facility in Dublin, with outsourced manufacture allowing a 1M units/annum production rate in 2015.
Following this project, we expect the developed materials to be integrated in parallel with production, with minimal modification to the production line. In 12 months following project completion, once the new product validation has been completed, these materials will be able to replace the present ruthenium based dye and electrolyte. Higher performance and increased long term stability extends the present commercial markets for DSSC and opens new avenues; therefore increased product sales and staffing requirement is anticipated.
Since no specific standards exist for performance and stability of DSSC, SolarPrint will apply their own test regimes at their facility which they have adapted from existing photovoltaic standards. SolarPrint are closely involved in the development of new standards for DSSC and will bring the results of this project into that workflow.
KaïronKem is one of the leading French custom organic synthesis supplier and producer of complex organic compounds, mainly for the pharmaceutical industries. Their objective is to expand their existing catalogue of compounds with the exclusive dye molecules developed in this project, gaining new markets primarily in DSSC photovoltaics, and secondarily in fluorescent labelling of biological materials and organic electronics.
By working with the RTD performers in the project, in particular CEA with their specialist development competence, under the structure of the scheme KaïronKem stand to gain very valuable formulations of organic dyes with a specific commercial purpose and a market-ready customer in SolarPrint, as well as learning know-how on the dye development and testing. KaïronKem then has the capability to scale up the synthesis for commercial production.
Solaronix has pioneered DSSC technology for over 15 years, making and supplying nano-TiO2 pastes, ruthenium sensitizers, ionic-liquid based and other electrolytes and various additives. They also produce solar simulation and light soaking test equipment using a proprietary lamp generating a solar-like spectrum. Through this project they aim to improve their catalogue of ionic liquids, gaining knowledge and materials from the collaboration with the RTD performers to produce unique formulations suitable for commercial DSSC in high volume production. They are also involved in several other collaborations including a large scale installation with EPFL that will benefit from the results.
As the exploitation partner for the ionic liquid based electrolyte results, Solaronix´s position in this developing market will be strengthened with a close relationship with SolarPrint as they commercialise DSSC containing organic dyes requiring these specific tailored solutions. Furthermore, the technical expertise gained from this project could well be transferrable to other challenging technologies outside of DSSC, enhancing Solaronix’s development in these areas.
Objectives of the ADIOS-Ru Project
This project will aim to develop organic, non-ruthenium based dyes that are:
• low-cost; target 50% projected volume production cost compared to N719 Ruthenium dye
• scalable in production; sufficient yield for volume production as validated by KaïronKem
• high light to energy conversion performance; comparable to N719 under both low light and AM1.5 conditions
• stable; a complete DSSC able to survive for 1000hrs without significant degradation under SolarPrint’s standard accelerated test conditions
The project will also necessarily identify and/or develop and test a partnering electrolyte and tune the cell configuration to make the complete cell.
In order to achieve this, the goals can be further broken down into:
RTD objectives
a) Identify synthetic routes appropriate for developing new organic dyes without rare elements
b) Determine and improve the electro-optical and stability properties of the new organic dye matched with a TiO2 photo-electrode
c) Match the new organic dyes with ionic liquid based electrolytes and improve the key electrolyte properties for a stable cell
d) Determine the optimum dye-uptake procedure for a given photo-electrode, and develop characterisation tools to analyse the process
e) Optimize of the thickness of the TiO2 photoelectrode, pore size and porosity factors to suit the dye
f) Improve expertise and leadership in the area of organic materials for hybrid photovoltaic technologies
Strategic SME objectives:
a) Gain access to high performance, low cost and stable organic dyes
b) Resolve compatibility and integration issues within DSSC for ionic liquid electrolytes
c) Address the issues of stability and lifetime for materials in DSSC, and the completed cell
d) Use characterisation tools for dye-uptake to progress from optimized laboratory processes (hours) to industrial dying processes (minutes)
e) Reduce the time to market for integration of new dyes and electrolytes into DSSC through greater knowledge and understanding of their development
f) Enable scaled manufacturing of both DSSC component materials and complete DSSC
g) Develop and contribute to transferrable standards for performance and stability testing for DSSC materials and products
h) Remove uncertainty in issues of toxicity from DSSC products
i) Build EU expertise, competitiveness and leadership in the area of printable DSSC technology
Project Results:
See attached file
Potential Impact:
The principle economic objective of the ADIOS-Ru project is to increase penetration of DSSC products into the PV marketplace. The project result, DSSC utilizing a novel organic dye/electrolyte combination, will result in a substantial reduction in the raw material cost per module unit, by up to 40%. Reducing DSSC manufacturing costs will both unlock new market opportunities for DSSC and allow the technology to challenge existing PV market sectors.
Since 2006, worldwide solar cell production has increased by 500% and this strong growth trend is expected to continue. Even in the more conservative projected growth scenarios, it is anticipated that global market will be 2.5 times its current size by 2015 .
The technology landscape of the photovoltaic market is often described by three generations. The marketplace is currently dominated by established first and second generation technologies. In this categorisation, DSSC is the leading emerging third generation technology.
One of the key technical challenges in realising DSSC’s commercial potential is in reducing the lifecycle cost of a DSSC module. The results of the ADIOS-Ru project will address this by removing dependence on Ruthenium dyes, while maintaining performance and improving stability. This will impact the following markets:
Indoor Applications:
The consortium strongly believes that the first DSSC products will be light-harvesting modules for indoor devices. For this industry, removing battery maintenance and electrical wiring from sensor and control devices is a key enabler . Figure 3 2 shows the projected market growth for these devices until 2015.
Any reduction in manufacturing cost will increase the size of the addressable target market in the indoor wireless device domain. A DSSC module unit cost at present makes it economically viable for 30% of this market, including temperature, light, CO2 and occupancy sensors. As an indication, reduction of manufacturing costs of 15% by combining results from this project would enable increase market penetration to 50% by expanding the sensor applications it is commercially and technically practical to be powered by DSSC. Applying this to projected market growth, incorporating the DSSC fractional cost within a typical wireless device, the ADIOS-Ru project will increase DSSC’s addressable market in this sector alone from €263 million to €438 million by 2016, an increase of 66%. Subsequently, further reduction in costs with higher performance will open the market for indoor charging of other low powered devices such as consumer electronics, medical and tracking devices. Market analysts predict that these segments will represent billion-euro opportunities in the medium term .
Outdoor Applications:
For PV used in outdoor applications, the industry unit cost is on a strong downward trajectory. The ADIOS-Ru project will help enable DSSC prices to move into a comparable range with the first and second generation technologies.
Industry forecasts indicate that annual revenues in for traditional outdoor PV technologies will approach $100 billion by 2015 . Given the unique characteristics of DSSC technology for harnessing light in non-ideal conditions, existing markets may be extended to create market-share for DSSC in Building Integrated PV (BIPV) and Automotive PV (APV). The ADIOS-Ru developments will firmly place the consortium SMEs as the leading European players for future exploitation of DSSC in these areas.
SolarPrint Market Impact
The project technical objectives beyond the state of the art will deliver a complete cell containing an organic dye / electrolyte combination, replacing the incumbent Ruthenium-based materials set and reducing the overall material cost. An analysis of the projected cost benefit on the materials base derived from SolarPrint’s bottom-up cost analysis, based on volume quotes from supply-chain partners. By decrease of the per-module cost of dye, electrolyte and TiO2 in the project result, an overall material cost reduction of 40% is forecast.
In addition to the materials cost benefit, the project objective of developing stable organic dyes with new anchoring functions will enable the reduction of the dye-soaking cycle time from 12 hours to less than 4 hours. Once production at scale commences, SolarPrint will realise a significant reduction in equipment, overhead and labour requirements in exercising this process step.
SolarPrint’s benefit from the project will therefore be a direct effect of expansion and increased penetration into the DSSC markets described above, enabled by these significant cost reductions.
Solaronix Market Impact
As DSSC market penetration increases and product sales rise, Solaronix will benefit from providing the ionic-liquid-based electrolytes developed within this project. Solaronix anticipates that collaboration with SolarPrint and supplying SolarPrint’s product scaling will significantly add to the growth of their business.
New knowledge gained from the project will also enable expansion and improvement ofSolaronix’ ionic-liquid-based electrolytes development and technology licensing activities. As a secondary effect, direct market growth is anticipated by exploitation of the ionic-liquid-based electrolytes into markets outside of DSSC, for example battery development, thereby expanding Solaronix’s business and product portfolio.
KaïronKem Market Impact
Similarly, KaïronKem will benefit from the sale of organic dyes to the expanding DSSC market, developed in the project specifically for production of DSSC. The new compounds developed will be produced exclusively by KaïronKem and will add strength to their building blocks and small molecules catalogue, helping them to expand their business in the emerging market of organic semi-conductive materials and photovoltaic components. The developed dyes will also find application in fluorescent labelling of biological materials, and with modification the materials and processes may be used in producing dyes for visual displays.
This project also presents KaïronKem a substantial opportunity to expand their knowhow in the field of organic dye production and development, learning from the leading academic developers in the field.
Social impact
• Quality of life and health and safety
This extension the PV application into new areas of technology by the development of DSSC will provide a renewable power source to off-grid consumer devices and ultimately to wider markets in non-ideal light environments. This is consistent with the objectives of the European Photovoltaic Technology Platform and EU policy on climate change, including the European Climate Change Programme (ECCP) and 2005 Legislation "Winning the Battle Against Global Climate Change".
Additionally, the application of energy harvesting for wireless sensors is strongly interrelated to energy efficiency and sustainable buildings. For much of Europe’s building stock, effective retro-fitted building energy management systems will only be possible using wireless devices where both the communications and power wiring are removed. The use of intelligent wireless networks with DSSC enabled temperature, humidity, indoor air quality (CO2) and occupancy sensors can result in 15-20% savings in energy usage . This is directly in line with 2007 EU Legislation “Limiting Global Climate Change to 2 degrees Celsius - The way ahead for 2020 and beyond”, in which energy efficiency in residential and commercial buildings is explicitly outlined as a target area for energy savings.
These building efficiency energy savings, and the future penetration of DSSC into BIPV, will decrease and divert energy reliance from conventional supply. Reduction in reliance on fossil fuels, as enshrined in the abovementioned EU legislation, as desirable for the quality of life for all Europe’s citizens. The redistribution of national and European energy generation will reduce the need for transport of energy (electricity or fuels) and increase the security of European energy supply.
• Improving employment prospect and level of skills in Europe
It cannot be understated how much the development of new organic dyes and electrolytes for DSSC will strengthen the position of the SME partners in the marketplace. Increased and new business will certainly translate in job creation for specialised and unspecialised workers, centred on the European labour market. Each of SolarPrint, KaironKem and Solaronix expect to employ at least two more staff in addition to their currently planned expansion rate as a direct result of the industrialisation of the project results.
All the SME partners and RTD performers work closely with academic institutions and are involved in the training and development of Europe’s brightest scientists and engineers. The results of the project will feed directly into skill development at Europe’s universities.
• Environmental impact.
Photovoltaics are a forerunner for replacing conventional carbon-based energy sources over time. DSSC will presents a lower cost option than PV on the market today, and will be applicable in situations where silicon-based panels cannot be deployed, making it an attractive development environmentally.
DSSC manufacturing is also advantageous compared to present PV technologies, as it:
- Is less energy intensive than silicon technologies, requiring significantly less energy to produce. Many of the layers are printable, with the greatest consumption being sintering of the oxide layers
- Non-toxic materials are used. The majority of raw chemicals are non-toxic and widely used in industry
Specifically for the ADIOS-Ru project, the organic replacement for Ruthenium based dyes virtually eliminates potential recycling issues with DSSC, reducing the lifecycle cost of the product.
Trans-national cooperation between industries and research institutions
The project objectives are relevant for the group of SMEs active in the field of DSSCs manufacturing and related components. All the SMEs involved in the project are highly motivated by the projected outcomes of this project, and will strongly benefit from mutual collaboration and cooperation with excellent European research centres.
The participation of three SMEs allows sharing of each organisation’s development risks, creating a wide basis for the commercial exploitation of results in Europe. In particular, the capability of the consortium to combine efforts in scaling production will be a strong competitive advantage.
Working in cooperation at a European scale is justified:
- By the fact that the SMEs have to compete in a demanding globalised market. In this situation cooperation is a vital tool to expand their expertise, develop capability and increase business
- By the research challenges that require advanced skills in critical scientific. Each SME has its own business and expertise but not the competency to tackle all the problems concerning the holistic development of the novel DSSC targeted. The SMEs in this consortium do not individually have the capability to invest suitable financial resources for all of scientific and industrial research required
- By the sharing of scientific and industrial risk
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