High-efficiency Block Copolymer Solar Cells: A Scaleable Prototype for Low Cost Energy Generation

Completed

Renewable Energy Sources(Solar Energy, Photovoltaics)

Basic and strategic applied research

PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Chemistry)
PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Metallurgy and Materials)

Not Cross-cutting

Professor ML Turner
Chemistry
University of Manchester

Standard

EPSRC

01 May 2008

30 April 2011

36 months

£496,776

Materials sciences

North West

Nanoscience to Engineering

Professor ML Turner, Chemistry, University of Manchester

Dr B Saunders, Materials, University of Manchester
Professor SG Yeates, Chemistry, University of Manchester

Note : grants EP/F056397/1, EP/F056303/1, EP/F056370/1 and EP/F056389/1 are all linked

Widespread implementation of photovoltaic electricity to meet changing energy demands requires a step-change in the cost of photovoltaic power. This proposal assembles a consortium of chemists, physicists and materials scientists from Imperial College London and the universities of Manchester, Sheffield and Durham to produce new prototype polymer solar cells that have high power conversion efficiencies and could be mass produced cost effectively. We propose new polymer solar cell designs thatintegrate flexibility with inexpensive materials and solution based processing. In one approach, block copolymers are used to direct formation of nanostructured thin films to provide high efficiency polymer solar cells. In a second approach, block copolymers will be used to direct crystallisation within nanostructured films. Independent optimisation of the optical and electronic properties, together with theoretical modelling input, will provide design rules for maximising power conversion efficiency. The project will establish strategies for scaling up the device designs which have the highest efficiencies. Our objective is to construct affordable and scalable polymer solar cells that havean energy conversion efficiency of at least 7%

14/04/08