AUSTRALIAN scientists have produced A3 sized flexible plastic solar cells, the largest made in Australia and ten times the size of the previous record.
Researchers from the Victorian Organic Solar Cell Consortium leveraged a new $200,000 solar cell printer installed at CSIRO to print the organic photovoltaic cells.
The VICOSC is a collaboration between CSIRO, The University of Melbourne, Monash University and industry partners.
Cells of this size allow for a big range of possible applications. It can be integrated into advertising signage, for example, to power lights and interactive elements, or embedded into laptop cases for supplemental device power.
THE VICOSC team started three years ago making cells the size of a fingernail, then moved up to cells measuring 10cm square. The new printer allows production of 30cm wide cells.
The Holy Grail of flexible solar cells is in the building industry, be it laminating the cells to windows of skyscrapers, or printing cells directly onto materials like steel to embed solar generation capabilities onto roofing materials.
The organic photovoltaic cells, which produce 10–50 watts of power per square metre, could even be used to improve the efficiency of more traditional silicon solar panels.
According to VICOSC, the group is using existing screen printing technologies and techniques, improving the accessibility of the technology.
Using semiconducting inks, the researchers print the cells straight onto paper-thin flexible plastic or steel. With the ability to print at speeds of up to ten metres per minute, they can produce one cell every two seconds.
As part of the consortium, a complementary screen printing line is also being installed at nearby Monash University. Combined, they will make the Clayton Manufacturing and Materials Precinct one of the largest organic solar cell printing facilities in the world.