The University of New South Wales (UNSW) and the University of Sydney in Australia claim to have produced a new generation of experimental solar cells using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GCMS) to pass testing standards for heat and humidity of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).
Led by Professor Anita Ho-Baillie of the Sydney university, the research team conducted lab tests to determine if solar cell modules can withstand effects of outdoor operating conditions by exposing them to repeated temperature cycling between -40º and 85º, as well as exposure to 85% relative humidity.
Using metal halide perovskite, the team suppressed the decomposition of perovskite cells using a 'simple, low-cost polymer glass blanket'. The GCMS method helped them put on a pressure-tight seal to suppress the perovskite 'outgassing' which is a process for perovskite cells releasing gas from within their structures that leads to their decomposition.
The team figured that perovskite solar cells survived more than 1,800 hours of the IEC Damp Heat test and 75 cycles of Humidity Freeze test exceeding the requirement of IEC61215:2016 standard for the first time.
As per the team, their work will contribute to advancing work on stabilizing perovskite solar cells which will increase their commercialization prospects.
"They are a very inexpensive, 500 times thinner than silicon and are therefore flexible and ultra-lightweight. They also have tremendous energy enabling properties and high solar conversion rates," said Professor Ho-Baillie. "Perovskite cells will need to stack up against the current commercial standards. That's what is so exciting about our research. We have shown that we can drastically improve their thermal stability."
Their research has been published in the scientific journal Science.