Article
Energy & Fuels
Minh Hoang Nguyen, Mohamed Zbair, Patrick Dutournie, Antonella Gervasini, Cyril Vaulot, Simona Bennici
Summary: A new two-component water sorbent MgSO4 / Hydroxyapatite has been developed for sorption-based solar heat storage. The composite material has high water sorption capacity and heat of hydration, and exhibits relatively good stability.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
W. Kooijman, D. J. Kok, M. A. R. Blijlevens, H. Meekes, E. Vlieg
Summary: This paper tests a relatively new class of thermochemical compounds for their heat storage potential and identifies one material that meets the desired criteria. Additionally, there are five other salts that meet two out of the three criteria.
JOURNAL OF ENERGY STORAGE
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Ata Ur Rehman, Tianyu Zhao, Ihsan Muhammad, Shehla Rasheed, Rahim Shah, Adnan Raza Altaf, Fumin Zhang, Sining Yun
Summary: Researchers synthesized a new MgCl2/MXene (Ti3C2Tx) composite sorbent for low-temperature thermochemical heat storage through the impregnation method. Various techniques were used to characterize the mechanical and thermal properties of the MgCl2/MXene composites. The results showed that the MXene-based composites exhibited improved adsorption properties and cyclic stability compared to pure MgCl2. The water sorption kinetics and energy storage density of the composites were also evaluated, indicating their potential for long-term heat storage applications.
JOURNAL OF ENERGY STORAGE
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Joey Aarts, Stan de Jong, Martina Cotti, Pim Donkers, Hartmut Fischer, Olaf Adan, Henk Huinink
Summary: This study presents a systematic investigation on the hydration kinetics of mm-sized salt hydrate particles, revealing that the particle density and tortuosity are the key parameters affecting its performance. The primary powder size, on the other hand, does not have any impact on the particle performance. The study also suggests the potential of shape and size optimization to improve the hydration kinetics of salt hydrate particles for thermochemical heat storage.
JOURNAL OF ENERGY STORAGE
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Natalia Mazur, Sergio Salviati, Henk Huinink, Alberto Fina, Federico Carosio, Hartmut Fischer, Olaf Adan
Summary: This paper investigates the interaction between strontium bromide hexahydrate (SBH) and polydiallyldimethylammonium chloride (PDAC) as well as other additives in thermochemical heat storage (TCHS) composites. The study explores the effects of these additives on reaction temperature and speed and finds that PDAC can both inhibit and enhance hydration depending on its content in the composite.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Minh Hoang Nguyen, Mohamed Zbair, Patrick Dutournie, Simona Bennici
Summary: Sorption-based thermal storage is an attractive approach for sustainable and cost-effective thermal management and energy storage. However, the low sorption capacity of sorbents has been a challenge. This research investigates the use of MgSO4/bead activated carbon composites for thermochemical sorption heat storage, which showed high heat release and sorption capacity. The composite achieved higher water sorption capacity and thermal energy density due to the highly developed microporosity and high thermal conductivity of bead activated carbon. This research provides a promising low-carbon pathway for efficient thermal energy capture, storage, and utilization.
JOURNAL OF ENERGY STORAGE
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Melian A. R. Blijlevens, Natalia Mazur, Wessel Kooijman, Hartmut R. Fischer, Henk P. Huinink, Hugo Meekes, Elias Vlieg
Summary: This study experimentally determines the thermodynamic properties of SrCl2 and reveals its high energy density and full cyclability for at least 10 cycles. The research also investigates the thermodynamic equilibria and metastable zones for each transition, as well as the influence of sample preparation on nucleation kinetics.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Takuya Hatakeyama, Norihiko L. Okamoto, Satoshi Otake, Hiroaki Sato, Hongyi Li, Tetsu Ichitsubo
Summary: This study demonstrates that birnessite-type layered manganese dioxide with crystal water can serve as a well-balanced heat storage material due to its water-intercalation mechanism, high energy density, and validated driving force for intercalation, providing an optimal solution for low-grade waste-heat applications.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Simona Bennici, Patrick Dutournie, Jeremy Cathalan, Mohamed Zbair, Elliot Scuiller, Cyril Vaulot, Minh Hoang Nguyen
Summary: The study focused on developing composite materials based on activated carbon supports and magnesium sulfate hydrates to increase energy density and improve transport phenomena. Experiment results showed a relation between salt hydration level and hydration enthalpy, with higher water partial pressure enhancing salt hydration. After multiple hydration/dehydration cycles, the composite material demonstrated stability for use in house heating and hot water generation.
RENEWABLE & SUSTAINABLE ENERGY REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Zhang Xueling, Wang Feifei, Zhang Qi, Lei Xudong, Wang Yanling, Zhang Yeqiang, Cheng Chuanxiao, Jin Tingxiang
Summary: A new composite thermochemical heat storage material was proposed with optimized samples Smix, Xopt, and Yopt exhibiting different adsorption capacities and heat storage densities. Among them, Xopt showed the highest adsorption capacity and heat storage density, as well as good cycle stability, indicating its potential application in medium- and low-temperature thermochemical adsorption heat storage systems.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2021)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Ata Ur Rehman, Muhammad Zahir Shah, Aamir Ali, Tianyu Zhao, Rahim Shah, Ihsan Ullah, Hazrat Bilal, Ahsan Riaz Khan, Muhammad Iqbal, Asif Hayat, Maosheng Zheng
Summary: ZnSO4 · 7H2O is a promising thermochemical heat storage material with good cyclicability and water sorption performance. The material exhibits high enthalpy for dehydration and hydration, and the water sorption performance is significantly improved at 75% relative humidity.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENERGY RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Quentin Touloumet, Georgeta Postole, Lishil Silvester, Laurence Bois, Aline Auroux
Summary: The study investigates the use of aluminum fumarate - porous alumina as a host matrix for CaCl2-based composite sorbents for thermochemical heat storage applications. The results show that the hierarchical porous structure impacts the physico-chemical characteristics and water storage performances, with enhanced capacity in the presence of micropores and mesoporosity. CaCl2-AF/Al composites exhibit increased water and heat storage capacities with higher salt content, reaching 1930 kJ kg(-1) and 0.68 kgH(2)O kg(-1) for 61 wt% of salt. The study highlights the significant impact of salt content on storage capacity and the influence of porosity on water vapor sorption behavior.
JOURNAL OF ENERGY STORAGE
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Ata Ur Rehman, Tianyu Zhao, Muhammad Zahir Shah, Yaqoob Khan, Asif Hayat, Changwei Dang, Maosheng Zheng, Sining Yun
Summary: This study demonstrates a novel thermo-chemical heat storage material using a 2D MXene nanohybrid, MgSO4/Ti3C2Tx, which exhibits improved hydration/dehydration enthalpy, superior thermal conductivity, good cyclic ability, maximum water sorption performance, and larger thermal energy conversion. The results suggest that the MgSO4/MXene nanohybrid has excellent long-term thermal energy storage, photo-to-thermal conversion, and larger water sorption performance, making it a promising candidate for thermochemical heat storage applications.
Article
Energy & Fuels
Xin Liu, Haomin Wang, Xiao Liu, Fangming Yang, Li Guan, Suleiman Sani, Chenggong Sun, Yupeng Wu
Summary: In this study, novel salt composites were prepared using different mesoporous silica as the porous matrices and MgSO4 via impregnation method. The results showed that the MgSO4 loading level and textural properties of the porous matrices played a critical role in determining the water adsorption performance of the salt composites. The salt composites prepared with mesostructured cellular foam (MCF) exhibited excellent water adsorption capacity and hydration/dehydration rate, indicating their potential as promising candidates for low temperature energy storage.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
N. N. Sulaiman, M. Ismail, A. H. A. Rashid, N. A. Ali, N. A. Sazelee, S. N. Timmiati
Summary: The hydrogen sorption performances of the 4MgH(2) + LiAlH4 system destabilized with 5 wt% Al2TiO5 showed significantly improved dehydrogenation temperature and kinetics. The introduction of Al2TiO5 resulted in earlier hydrogen liberation and enhanced absorption and desorption kinetics, indicating a synergistic effect on hydrogen storage behavior.
JOURNAL OF ALLOYS AND COMPOUNDS
(2021)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Shahriyar Safat Dipta, Md Habibur Rahaman, Walia Binte Tarique, Ashraful Hossain Howlader, Ayush Pratik, John A. Stride, Ashraf Uddin
Summary: Implementing a double-sided passivation approach can enhance the performance of n-i-p structured PSCs and improve the stability and photovoltaic properties of the cells.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Daniel Ourinson, Andreas Brand, Andreas Lorenz, Marwan Dhamrin, Sebastian Tepner, Michael Linse, Nathalie Goettlicher, Kosuke Tsuji, Jonas D. Huyeng, Florian Clement
Summary: This work presents two approaches to reduce the amount of silver on the rear side of M2-sized industrial iTOPCon solar cells. The Cu-based approach shows promise with similar power conversion efficiency compared to the conventional approach, while the Al-based approach exhibits some limitations but demonstrates the potential of such type of contact for iTOPCon solar cells.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Abasifreke Ebong, Donald Intal, Sandra Huneycutt, Thad Druffel, Ruvini Dharmadasa, Kevin Elmer, Apolo Nambo
Summary: This study demonstrates the successful metallization of a PERC silicon solar cell using screen-printable copper (Cu) paste. The Cu paste contains antioxidant additives and diffusion inhibitors to prevent oxidation and diffusion of Cu. The Cu-printed cells achieved an efficiency of 19% and showed no Cu diffusion after characterization tests. The long-term stability and effectiveness of the Cu diffusion barrier were also confirmed.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Senami Zogbo, Wilfried Favre, Olivier Bonino, Marie-Estelle Gueunier-Farret
Summary: Measuring specific contact resistivity (pc) is crucial for interface engineering in high efficiency solar cells. The Transfer Length Method (TLM) is commonly used for evaluating layer sheet resistance (Rsheet) and pc, but it is not suitable for metal/Transparent Conductive Oxide (TCO) interface evaluation in silicon heterojunction (SHJ) cells. This study investigates the parameters that restrict current confinement within the TCO, including mid-gap trap density (Dit) at the a-Si:H/c-Si interface and the activation energy (Ea = Ec - EF) variation of a-Si:H contact layers.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Jean-Baptiste Charpentier, Philippe Voarino, Julien Gaume
Summary: The phenomenon of ribbon lengthening in PV modules exposed to thermal cycling is not well explained in the literature. In this study, a three layers model is proposed to explain this effect, and the predictions of the model are validated through finite element method simulations and experiments. The results show that the model predictions are consistent with the indirect measurements, but not with the direct measurements. Additionally, it is inferred that the encapsulant plays a role after the solder failure.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Jean-Baptiste Charpentier, Philippe Voarino, Julien Gaume
Summary: This study investigates the problematic ribbon lengthening observed in PV modules exposed to high amplitude thermal cycling. A simplified system model is proposed and accurate predictions are obtained using the Finite Element Method. The results show that the thickness of the encapsulant has a substantial impact on the lengthening of the ribbons.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
S. Catalan-Gomez, E. Martinez Castellano, M. Schwarz, M. Montes Bajo, L. Dorado Vargas, A. Gonzalo, A. Redondo-Cubero, A. Gallego Carro, A. Hierro, J. M. Ulloa
Summary: This study investigates the use of core-shell gallium nanoparticles as functional light scatterers on solar cells. By optimizing the nanoparticle size, the short-circuit current of the solar cells is significantly improved. The underlying physical mechanism is studied through optical measurements and simulations, and a method to reduce the plasmonic effect of the nanoparticles is demonstrated.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
M. Gamel, G. Lopez, A. M. Medrano, A. Jimenez, A. Datas, M. Garin, I. Martin
Summary: In this study, a highly reflective ohmic contact to p-type c-Ge material is demonstrated, which can improve the efficiency of thermophotovoltaic devices. The experimental results show that this contact can simultaneously meet the requirements of good back surface passivation, low electrical resistivity, and high reflectivity. Moreover, simulations suggest that implementing these back contacts has the potential to achieve conversion efficiencies comparable to high-efficiency c-Ge TPV cells.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Hongyang Wei, Qing Xu, Dongchu Chen, Min Chen, Menglei Chang, Xiufang Ye
Summary: This study prepared solar selective absorption films based on anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) photonic crystals using a unique electrodeposition method. The Co-Ag electrodeposited film exhibited superior solar selective absorption properties and thermal stability.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Ankit Kumar, Ankit Chauhan, Jordi Llobet, Helder Fonseca, Patricia C. Sousa, Carlos Calaza, Gil Shalev
Summary: This study found that decorating subwavelength arrays with SiO2 quasi-nanolenses (qNL arrays) can enhance the absorption of the solar spectrum. Optical absorption mechanisms in qNL arrays were investigated using near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM), revealing that the enhancement is a result of the combination of effective antireflection coating, increased optical interactions between adjacent dielectrics for elevated light trapping, and strong light concentration due to the presence of qNLs.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
S. Pingel, T. Wenzel, N. Goettlicher, M. Linse, L. Folcarelli, J. Schube, S. Hoffmann, S. Tepner, Y. C. Lau, J. Huyeng, A. Lorenz, F. Clement
Summary: This study demonstrates the potential to reduce silver consumption in highly efficient SHJ cells through fine-line screen printing using low temperature paste with various screens. The results show that using finer mesh allows for narrower grid fingers and lower resistance, leading to improved cell efficiency. Simulation results indicate that module wire configuration is crucial for reducing silver consumption.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Xibo He, Jun Qiu, Wei Wang, Yicheng Hou, Yong Shuai
Summary: This paper proposes a novel phase change material with high thermal conductivity and stability for fast photo-thermal conversion and storage. The experimental results demonstrate excellent durability and stability of the phase change material, with good performance in thermal conductivity and thermal storage efficiency.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Qingyuan Liu, Lin Wang, Zheng Liu, Guohua Liu
Summary: A new evaporating structure consisting of liquid marble with tunable nanowire array is proposed to enhance solar evaporation. The experiments show that the liquid marble with nanowire array exhibits outstanding evaporation performance, which has significant implications for seawater desalination or wastewater treatment.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Hao Liu, Qiming Liu, Jinpei Liu, Yonggang Zhao, Yingjie Yu, Yue An, Ganghui Wei, Yanzheng Li, Yujun Fu, Junshuai Li, Deyan He
Summary: Moisture in the air is identified as the main cause of performance degradation in organic-inorganic hybrid solar cells. Exposure to air leads to the growth of thin oxide layer on the interface and the formation of silver sulfide, increasing the series resistance and decreasing the fill factor, thus degrading the cell performance.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)
Article
Energy & Fuels
E. Blanco, P. Martin, M. Dominguez, P. Fernandez-Palacios, I. Lombardero, C. Sanchez-Perez, I. Garcia, C. Algora, M. Gabas
Summary: This study addresses the lack of optical parameters for p-type Ge wafers by determining the complex refractive indices of commercial Ge wafers with varying doping levels. The obtained data successfully reproduces the critical points associated with interband transitions and absorption features below the bandgap. The refractive indices were validated through experimental measurements and solar cell simulations.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2024)