A: Exploring slot-die coating for large area fullerene-free organic photovoltaics
B: Silver nanowires as flexible transparent electrodes in smart windows and e-textiles applications
Marwa Abd-Ellah, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
Exploring slot-die coating for large area fullerene-free organic photovoltaics
Marwa Abd-Ellah, University of Calgary, Canada
Audrey Laventure, University of Calgary, Canada
Cayley R. Harding, University of Calgary, Canada
E. Cieplechowicz, University of Calgary, Canada
Gregory C. Welch, University of Calgary, Canada
Organic photovoltaics stands as one of the most promising clean energy technologies. However, its commercial availability is a challenge that has not yet been overcome. To improve the cost effectiveness of the organic solar cell active layer, our group has recently developed a series of N-annulated perylene diimide (PDI) derivatives acting as electron acceptors, one of these is today commercially available. These resulting fullerene-free photovoltaic devices present a high power conversion efficiency, making them a viable alternative to the more traditional fullerene-containing solar cells. Considering that these molecules can be mass-produced, they are excellent candidates for the coating of large area solar cells. Herein, we present the structure-property relationship of these materials, along with their utility as electron acceptors in bulk heterojunction organic photovoltaic. We also discuss the preliminary upscaling results of our efforts towards coating large-scale organic solar cells.
Silver nanowires as flexible transparent electrodes in smart windows and e-textiles applications
Marwa Abd-Ellah, University of Waterloo, Canada
Nupur Maheshwari, University of Waterloo, Canada
Jonathan Atkinson, University of Waterloo, Canada
Irene Goldthorpe, University of Waterloo, Canada
Silver nanowire films are as conductive and visibly transparent as ITO and FTO has made it an attractive alternative transparent conducting material in recent years. These nanowire electrodes are lower in material cost, and unlike tin oxides can be easily deposited as a solution at room temperature without the requirement for a vacuum. Silver nanowire electrodes have recently replaced ITO in its first application on the market – touch sensor devices - from companies such as LG, Lenovo and HP, demonstrating their commercial viability. In this work, two major applications of silver nanowires films have been investigated in e-textile devices and smart windows coatings. Transparent conductive fabrics with sheet resistances as low as 3 Ω/□ are achieved by transfer printing films of silver nanowire networks onto the surface of fabrics as well as the study of their functionality such as electromagnetic shielding and static dissipation. In addition, the property of silver nanowire films being transparent to NIR wavelengths has been explored for smart window applications. The high transparency of these films in the NIR will improve the solar heat gain of both static and dynamic glazings. While most of common window glazings are currently need to be fabricated in vacuum at high temperatures and require professional installation, these nanowire coatings could be painted or spayed onto glass by a home owner, which would significantly reduce the installation costs of static coatings.