Formulation of zinc oxide nanoparticle dispersions for metal oxide solar cells

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Photovoltaic (PV) devices or solar cells are among the most promising solutions to provide clean, sustainable and renewable energy for society since solar energy is abundant (and free) and these devices have minimal adverse impacts on the environment. Currently, crystalline silicon-based cells dominate the solar cell market. However, the cost of silicon solar cells is still high enough to impede their wide-spread commercial adoption. The production of silicon solar cells is also very energy-intensive and emits harmful substances to the environment. Hence new generation solar cell technologies such as thin film solar cells (e.g., copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS), CdTe, etc.), organic solar cells, dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) and the most recent perovskite solar cells have been extensively studied to address these issues. However, these technologies still face numerous challenges such as low efficiency, high sensitivity to moisture and oxygen, short lifetime and the reliance on rare metals (such as indium) and highly toxic materials (e.g., Cd and Pb). ZnO is cheap, inexpensive, non-toxic and, in particular, a very promising semiconductor material for optoelectronics. This project aims to develop novel solar cell technology using low-cost and low or non-toxic metal oxides as the active layers and electrodes. In particular, Prof. Mark Pritzker will collaborate with Zochem to develop and use ZnO particles as the critical electron transport layer in this new type of solar cell. Compared to other commercial ZnO particles, Zochem's products have very high purity, which is necessary for high cell performance because impurities act as electron traps that significantly reduce the current generated by solar cells. A successful completion of this project will help lead to a new solar cell technology based on ZnO and create a new market for Zochem and its products. The knowledge and technical advances gained through the course of this research project regarding the synthesis, formulation, processing and fabrication of solar cells will also have broad significance and help promote and innovate Canada's materials and energy industries.