Dye synthesis, electrolytes, electrodes and cell fabrication at the University of Wollongong
Researchers at the University of Wollongong inspecting a solar cell device (from left: Drs Attila Mozer, Klaudia Wagner and Professor David Officer)
Key to the development of a viable manufacturing process for a polymer solar cell is the creation of inexpensive materials. Professor David Officer, who leads the CRC-P research program on polymer solar cells, is at the University of Wollongong (UoW) and based in the Intelligent Polymer Research Institute (IPRI, www.ipri.uow.edu.au) which is directed by Professor Gordon Wallace. He has been contributing to international developments in polymer solar cell research for over 10 years, in particular in the design and use of porphyrin dyes in the dye sensitised solar cell (DSSC). His research team at UoW is developing the low-cost organic dyes, liquid electrolytes and the metal electrodes for use in the manufacture of the CRC-P flexible solar cell. They are optimising the performance of each of these components and the combinations of all the cell components to achieve the best possible trade-offs between the ease of manufacture of the components, the cost of the cell and its efficiency.
An operational porphyrin-based dye sensitised solar cell showing the structure of the porphyrin dye used
CRC-P researchers at UoW have access to state-of-the-art laboratories and equipment through IPRI and the associated ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES, www.electromaterials.edu.au) at the new Australian Institute for Innovative Materials (AIIM) facilities on the Innovation Campus. This contains some of the best synthesis, device fabrication and characterisation equipment in Australia, including laboratory scale reel-to-reel printing funded by the Australian National Fabrication Facility (www.ipri.uow.edu.au/anff). The AIIM synthesis facilities have allowed cost-effective syntheses of both organic dyes as well as new electrolytes for the solar cell design. The AIIM facilities have been essential to the substantial progress being made in the CRC-P solar cell project to date.
