A cost-effective, long-lifetime efficient organic luminescent solar concentrator

• Published in: Journal of applied physics Vol. 118; no. 1; p. 15502
• Main Authors: EL Mouedden, Yamna, Ding, Baofu, Song, Qunliang, Li, Guangji, Nguyen, Hoang, Alameh, Kamal
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Melville American Institute of Physics 07.07.2015
• Subjects: Applied physics; Concentrators; Energy conversion efficiency; Materials selection; Moisture content; Photovoltaic cells
• ISSN: 0021-8979; 1089-7550
• DOI: 10.1063/1.4923389

In this paper, we demonstrate the concept of a cost-effective, environment-friendly, highly stable, and efficient organic luminescent solar concentrator (OLSC) structure based on the use of an optically transparent lamination layer comprising a blend of an organic semiconductor host material and an organic red dye material, which is sandwiched between two glass panes. Experimental results demonstrate that the developed OLSC can achieve a power conversion efficiency of up to 5.3% and a lifetime of >1.0 × 105 h when operated in ambient environment. This is attributed to the enhanced solar light harvesting of the host materials, the ultra-low ultraviolet transmission, and negligible oxygen and water content permeability of the ultraviolet cured lamination layer. The high efficiency in conjunction with the cost-effective material selection contributes to the low cost per peak watt, making the reported OLSC structures attractive for building-integrated photovoltaic applications.