Coupling aqueous zinc batteries and perovskite solar cells for simultaneous energy harvest, conversion and storage

• Published in: Nature communications Vol. 13; no. 1; pp. 64 - 9
• Main Authors: Chen, Peng, Li, Tian-Tian, Yang, Yuan-Bo, Li, Guo-Ran, Gao, Xue-Ping
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 10.01.2022; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 639/301/1005; 639/301/299/946; 639/4077/4079/891; 639/638/161; Cathodes; Electrochemistry; Electrodes; Energy harvesting; Energy storage; Humanities and Social Sciences; multidisciplinary; Perovskites; Photovoltaic cells; Power management; Power sources; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Solar cells; Solar energy; Solar energy conversion; Storage batteries; Zinc
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-27791-7

Simultaneously harvesting, converting and storing solar energy in a single device represents an ideal technological approach for the next generation of power sources. Herein, we propose a device consisting of an integrated carbon-based perovskite solar cell module capable of harvesting solar energy (and converting it into electricity) and a rechargeable aqueous zinc metal cell. The electrochemical energy storage cell utilizes heterostructural Co 2 P-CoP-NiCoO 2 nanometric arrays and zinc metal as the cathode and anode, respectively, and shows a capacity retention of approximately 78% after 25000 cycles at 32 A/g. In particular, the battery cathode and perovskite material of the solar cell are combined in a sandwich joint electrode unit. As a result, the device delivers a specific power of 54 kW/kg and specific energy of 366 Wh/kg at 32 A/g and 2 A/g, respectively. Moreover, benefiting from its narrow voltage range (1.40–1.90 V), the device demonstrates an efficiency of approximately 6%, which is stable for 200 photocharge and discharge cycles. Accumulation of intermittent solar energy using secondary batteries is an appealing solution for future power sources. Here, the authors propose a device comprising of perovskite solar cells and aqueous zinc metal batteries connected via the sandwich joint electrode method.