Global installed photovoltaic (PV) capacity will likely reach and exceed 1 TW by the end of 2022. Studies applying increasingly sophisticated modeling from multiple sources predict that PV can and will provide a majority of electricity generation and even total energy contribution in a future sustainable energy economy. In this presentation, we will review recent growth rates and predictions for PV, focusing on both the historical record and future trajectories. We will identify timely choices to be made, particularly in managing sector coupling and supply and demand, that will determine the global need for PV by 2050. Finally, a majority power and energy role for PV will create new opportunities and challenges for performance and reliability, global manufacturing and supply chains, and sustainability and circularity. We will review associated R&D agendas and opportunities and priorities for global collaboration.

In this presentation we will report the molecular design, synthesis, and molecular and structural characterization of new molecular building blocks, donor polymers and non-fullerene acceptors for organic photovoltaic cells. New donor polymers were designed on easily accessible building blocks and avoid fluorination to facilitate synthetic strategies but delivering PCEs > 10% (in modules) and >17% (on small cells). Furthermore, we demonstrate new molecular and polymeric NFAs where combination of atomic substituent and regiochemical substituent arrangement (for the molecular) as well as co-monomer unit (for the polymeric) enable good structural order, good electron mobilities, and achieve optimal paring with several donor polymers. Finally, we summarize recent strategies to organic and oxide interlayers for realizing highly efficient and stable perovskite cells.

Yang's group has made notable contribution to the perovskite solar cell society and greatly enhanced the efficiency and stability of the metal halide perovskite solar cells, which is regarded as the new generation of the photovoltaic technique because of its low cost, high absorption coefficient, and ease of fabrication. In this talk, he will briefly introduce the unique merits of the perovskite material and address the fundamental factors of its stability issue. Impactful strategies developed by Yang’s group including selected additives for defect passivation and controlled grain growth, grain boundary minimization, and surface post-treatment reforming the interfaces of the perovskite and transport layers will be discussed. With largely improved operational stability and comparable power conversion efficiency compared to the silicon solar cell, we are expecting a promising upcoming era of perovskite solar cell commercialization. Finally, a few words about the status of the Y6 molecules will also be mentioned.

Halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have been the focus of much research in recent years due to their extremely high photoconversion efficiencies and their ability to be synthesized by solution processing. These materials crystallize in the perovskite, AMX3 crystal structure where A is a monovalent cation (e.g. methyl ammonium, MA, formamidinium, FA, and/or Cs), M is the metal cation and X is the halide anion. While great strides have been made to optimize the device performance of PSCs, there remain open questions as to the long-term field performance of these materials. While constant improvement in lab scale performance stability is being demonstrated a fundamental understanding of degradation mechanisms can still provide key insight into performance improvements. In addition, to fundamental lab scale studies field performance will be required to de-risk this technology for commercialization. In this talk, I will cover examples of both lab scale and field studies to improve our understanding of PSCs degradation mechanisms. First, I will discuss an application of X-ray scattering methods to probe the nanoscale heterogeneity of PSC absorber layers and couple these results to device level stability studies to understand the role heterogeneity plays in device performance. Finally, I will present a brief overview of an initial field demonstration of PSC modules as part of the Perovskite PV Accelerator for Commercializing Technologies, PACT, program. Together this work aims to improve our confidence in real world PSC module performance.

The energy landscape of reduced-dimensional perovskites (RDPs) can be tailored by adjusting their layer width (n). Recently, two/three-dimensional (2D/3D) heterostructures containing n = 1 and 2 RDPs have produced perovskite solar cells (PSCs) with >25% power conversion efficiency (PCE). Unfortunately, this method does not translate to inverted PSCs due to electron blocking at the 2D/3D interface. In this talk, I will discuss our work on tuning the layer width of RDPs in 2D/3D heterostructures to address this problem. In situ transient absorption spectroscopy during 2D ligand treatment reveals that, in general, larger cations form 2D heterostructures more slowly, resulting in wider RDPs; small modifications to ligand design further affect the preference of n-values of the resultant 2D structure, due to strain relaxation. We discover that 3-fluoro-phenethylammonium (3F-PEAI) induces preferential growth of n ≥ 3 RDPs. Leveraging these insights, we developed efficient inverted PSCs (with a certified quasi-steady-state PCE of 23.91%). Unencapsulated devices operate at room temperature and around 50% relative humidity for over 1,000 h without loss of PCE; and, when subjected to ISOS-L3 accelerated ageing, encapsulated devices retain 92% of initial PCE after 500 h.

Polymer electronics are competitive for applications such as wearable sensors which require high mechanical functionality (e.g., elasticity), but only moderate electronic functionality (e.g., charge carrier mobility). Still, the elastic modulus of polymer semiconductors (PSCs) (0.1 - 1 GPa for typical PSCs) is orders of magnitudes away from human skin (0.1 - 10 MPa). Different pathways were explored to achieve low-modulus PSCs, e.g., non conjugated spacers [1], backbone regioregularity [2], or sidechains modifications [3], to name a few, but lowering the modulus is generally associated with a decrease in mobility.



One can draw on an old concept in polymer engineering to approach the problem: Block copolymers separate on the nanoscale, and the two phases retain their respective properties (Tg, etc). This approach was successfully used to realize elongability (plastic deformation) in PSCs [4].

We synthesized triblock co-polymers (TBCs) by covalently end-capping the PSC poly-diketopyrrolopyrrole-thienothiophene (PDPP-TT), with two elastomeric polydimethyl-siloxanes (PDMS) chains [5]. The resulting TBCs are soft and durable: the TBC with the highest PDMS content has a low modulus (5.5 MPa) in the range of mammalian skin and achieves a mobility of 0.1 cm2V-1s-1, in the range of the pure PDPP-TT (0.7 cm2V-1s-1). In a doped state, the TBC maintains electronic functionality over more than 1500 cycles at 50% strain. Also, the TBC can be shear-coated at high speeds (up to 10 s cm-1) to yield smooth films with increased thickness (up to 600 nm) without degradation of the electrical performance [6]. Using physisorption onto the active channel, OFET-based biosensors were fabricated which detect both SARS-CoV-2 antigens as well as anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in less than 20 minutes. The device demonstrates a high sensitivity of about 19%/dec and limit of detection (LOD) 0.36 fg/mL for anti-SARS-Cov-2 antibodies, and at the same time, a sensitivity of 32%/dec and LOD of 76.61 pg/mL for the virus antigen detection [7].



References: [1] Bao et al. Adv. Funct. Mater. 28 (2018), 1804222.

[2] Kim et al. Macromolecules 48 (2015), 4339.

[3] Lipomi et al. Adv Funct Mater 24 (2014), 1169.

[4] Stingelin-Stutzmann et al. Adv. Funct. Mater. 17 (2007), 2674.

[5] Lissel et al. Adv. Mat. (2021), 2005416

[6] Lissel et al. Polymers 13 (2021), 1435

[7] Baraban, Lissel et al. ACS Biomater. Sci. Eng. (2021), doi.org/10.1021/acsbiomaterials.1c00727

As the entropy sink, the cold source is an integral part of a complete thermodynamic cycle in all heat-producing technologies. The unique challenge is to obtain coldness from renewable and sustainable sources. In this talk, I will discuss our recent efforts on radiative cooling in energy sustainability [e.g. Nature Sustainability (2019); PNAS (2021); Cell Rep. Phys. Sci. (2021)]. In particular, the potential to reduce the operational temperature of semiconductor solar panel using electricity-free cooling technology will be discussed.

Every day we deal with several innovations. A device, a new sensor, or even a new concept of mobility or renewable energy. Innovation is present in our lives more than ever. But where these innovations really happen? We have grown and built a center of excellence doing business in several countries. Opening the doors to the entire World, CSEM Brazil is now Onnin. Onnin has emerged to represent this growing move and to be the place where people are dedicated to creating solutions that will impact and transform the way we live or deal with things.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through Vision 2030 has defined a strong and clear roadmap for the development of renewable projects in the country. ACWA Power, a proud Saudi company that is leading energy transition globally, is committed to supporting the ambitious KSA vision by developing, investing and operating renewable energy, water desalination and green hydrogen projects, utilizing our global expertise to partner and enable shared clean energy goals. With regards to Solar technology, and most specifically about Photovoltaic (PV) technology, we are expecting a significant pipeline of projects in the near future. New modules with higher efficiency using advanced technologies and higher capacity will be introduced to the market. The advancement of local manufacturing capability is being strongly supported to meet the country needs using new technologies developed within KSA. This will encourage and bring more local content and industry / technology development, which in turn will spur local entrepreneurship and industry growth. In addition, an important factor to be taken into consideration is that when more PV projects are integrated with the Saudi grid, new opportunities and challenges will also be a part of the changing landscape. As things progress, the development of storage capabilities to provide grid stability and dispatch-ability will be considered common in the integration of XXX with solar projects. BESS, CSP and other ways to store energy are coming into the picture, ensuring high efficiency and low LCOE PV projects. The future is bright and it is really important to understand how KAUST is combining research and development, and driving digitalization solutions, to achieve high efficiency solar PV panels that reduce LCOE (Levelized Cost of Electricity) of the projects, as well as minimize land requirement. ACWA Power will continue paving the path to a cleaner, greener future, integrating the most innovative solutions to provide electricity, water and hydrogen at the lowest possible cost.

Since 1977, KACST –SANCST then- have been researching and developing renewable energy technologies, as well as, supporting and enabling renewable energy industries within the Kingdom. In this talk, we will present several efforts undertaken in the field in the past years with corresponding success stories. As one of the early R&D organizations that ventured into 3G and 4G photovoltaics technologies, KACST have been experimenting with Perovskites and OPVs since 2009. We will present our easy and efficient method to synthesize high quality lithium-based up-conversion nanoparticles (UCNPs), which combine two promising materials (UCNPs and lithium ions). These particles are known to enhance the photovoltaic performance of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) through utilizing near infrared (NIR) light of the solar light spectrum. The doped cell demonstrate a higher power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 19%, denser photocurrent, and better fill factor (FF) of 82 % in comparison to un-doped PSCs (PCE = ~16.5%; FF = 71%). Another effort is to integrate renewable energy systems with high-energy-consumption utility applications such as cooling or desalination plants, a success story that emerged from this effort is the construction of the world largest desalination plant operated by renewable energy at Alkhafji province, with a full fresh-water production capacity of 60k m^3. Up to this point, Alkhafji project has omitted 16k oil barrels which otherwise have been consumed locally, and avoided 20k tons of CO2 emissions. The third effort presented is developing resilient renewable technologies for arid and dry climates. A success story emerged from the is the development of anti-soiling (dust repellant) coating, where panel soiling losses were reduced by 30%, encapsulants life time were extended by 15%, and O&M (cleaning) costs were slashed by 30% for the first 5 years of application (estimate).

Carbon Management team of Aramco R&DC has successfully demonstrated the use of Solar Thermal technology in Qurayyah Sea Water Plant operation facility. The system is intended to help reduce the overall dependence on diesel for thermal energy requirement. It works simply by absorbing the incoming solar radiation and directly heating up water that is circulating in copper tubes inside the panels. The system uses a novel high efficiency aluminum absorber sheet (blue layer) to harness solar energy, and the vacuum maintained between the glass cover and the absorber sheet helps reducing the convection energy loses of the incoming radiation. In the specific application at Qurayyah Sea Water Plant, the hot water produced from the solar field is used to pre-heat feedwater to the steam boilers in the plant. This will result in over 10% savings of the total annual diesel consumption that is burned to meet the required thermal energy. This will also subsequently lead to the avoidance of over 350 tons of CO2 emissions annually which is a key motivation behind this decarbonization initiative. This achievement represents a really promising prospect for integrating renewable and sustainable energy solutions into the energy mix of Saudi Aramco and contributing to the economic development by availing commodity fuel for export instead of local consumption. The benefits also include encouraging the local investment on clean energy technologies and the development of local expertise in this field.

Seaside atrium of University Library