Development of Water-vased DSSCs for printable Flexible Photovoltaic Power Sources

The principal objective of the proposed project is to develop and produce a water-based Dye-Sensitised Solar Cell (DSSC). DSSCs show great potential, being less expensive to manufacture than other PV technologies and, significantly, they are printable flexible photovoltaic (PV) power sources. They promise substantial breakthroughs in solar energy development and consumer products. Specifically, the project will develop novel water-based DSSCs that will open up new applications, based on the ability to print on flexible plastic substrates and avoid the need for encapsulation. Instead of trying to eliminate water from the system and avoid water ingress, the idea is to create devices that are compatible with water. The development of a water-stable DSSC will overcome limitations in current options, leading to breakthroughs in applications where light weight, flexibility and portability are required (e.g. e-readers, e-fashion, medicine, etc).
Water was frequently used as an electrolyte in early dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) but was abandoned in favour of organic solvents that gave much higher cell efficiencies. The presence of water has been reported to degrade organic solvent-based electrolytes due to a possible formation of iodate, dye detachment or by a decrease in electron life-time. Recently however, it has been thought that water-based DSSCs could be relevant to industrial DSSC development as cells properly optimized to work with water can give reasonable efficiencies and display other advantages. These results ustify the return to re-examining and re-using water as a less expensive and more environmentally friendly alternative to organic solvents for DSSCs.
G24i, the first manufacturer of DSSCs using advanced roll-to-roll processing technology, will partner with Imperial College, home to one of the largest programmes in inorganic/organic electronic devices research in the UK. The partners complement one another, combining basic research capabilities with commercialisation and exploitation capabilities, manufacturing capacity and market access.