UP Endowment Fund has supported the development of a new generation solar installation
The opportunity to use new materials in the preparation of a luminescent solar concentrator (LSC), a device that is able to “collect” sunlight and concentrate it at its edges, where it is converted to electricity by a solar cell, will be addressed by Lukáš Zdražil from the Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials (RCPTM) and the Department of Physical Chemistry of the Faculty of Science, Palacký University Olomouc. The project, which also includes a several-month internship at Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany, was supported by the Palacký University Endowment Fund.
“Luminescence solar concentrators represent a step towards the development of a sustainable and renewable network of photovoltaic power stations integrated into the glass surfaces of urban buildings. At RCPTM, we have used so far carbon dots for the development of these devices, but from now onwards we will be able to make use of our lead-free perovskite nanocrystals. They will overcome the current disadvantages, which are the presence of lead and low stability,” said the second-year Ph.D. student, who is in the RCPTM magnetic nanostructures research group. As part of the project, he intends to capitalize upon his research experience with LSC and lead-free perovskites and design a highly transparent device capable of competing with current state-of-the-art technologies.
This one-year project also involves an international internship at Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg in a group that is the world leader in photovoltaics and renewable solar systems. Professor Patrik Schmuki, who is based in Erlangen, is also a key person of the dynamically developing photoelectrochemistry research group of RCPTM. “I find the internship at such a prestigious university a great benefit. I believe that the project will result in a long-standing collaboration that could open up opportunities for other students at Palacký University in the future,” said Zdražil.
He considers the development of a renewable-based energy network that can cover the energy demand while reducing carbon dioxide emissions one of the global challenges. Replacing standard glasses with transparent LSCs, together with solar cells embedded in window frames, could transform passive facades into sustainable energy-generating units. This would lead to a percentage increase in the use of “clean” solar energy and, in turn, a reduction in intrusion into the landscape.
The UP Endowment Fund supported six projects last June. “Like every year, it was important for us to be able to support what we value: talent and vision of motivated young people,” states their Facebook profile.