U.S. researchers extracted from plants using the protein as well as phosphate, carbon and other compounds, developed a mechanism to simulate self-assembly of plant photosynthesis, solar cells, the new battery also has a good self-repair capacity, is expected to significantly extend solar battery life. The study was published in the Sept. 5 issue of “natural chemical” magazine.
Many scientists tried to perfect the design of solar cells to improve the performance of solar cells, they produce the highest photoelectric conversion efficiency of the battery and one after another, however, few people concerned about the solar battery life.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology chemical engineer Michael Sturgeon Serrano explained that the sun and oxygen mixed together will produce some damage, for example, too much sun exposure of human aging and so easy, it also means that performance in the laboratory good solar cell, leave the lab to a “work” that may “strike.”
In addition, the current number of new non-silicon solar cells although low cost, high efficiency, excellent performance, but they can not stand the test of time, more than 60 hours later, the conversion efficiency of only 10% of the original.
In view of this, Strano and colleagues developed a professor of this size is only several nanometers, can self-assemble and self-repair of the “mini” solar cells.
In the preparation of this new solar cell, the researchers used extracted from plants, and photosynthesis can be a protein with adhesion of the phosphate ester, and has good electrical properties of carbon nanotubes and surfactant. Will break up some of the surfactant molecules, and allow them to maintain isolation.
The research team that surprised, when they surfactant extract from the mixture, this reconciliation of different substances into the “cocktail” mixture will self-assemble into a measuring just a few nanometers, the normal working of the solar cells.
Phosphate together forms a disk, respectively, on both sides of adhesion with carbon nanotubes and plant protein reaction center. Protein photosynthetic centers to collect the sun’s rays, releasing electrons, by phosphate, and then into the carbon nanotubes. In carbon nanotubes, the electronic aggregate together to form current.
The researchers stressed that such self-assembled batteries are born with the ability to repair it. If the sun damage some proteins, which can be added to the surfactant and protein, replace those wrecked protein; when the surfactant is extracted after the solar cell can re-self-assembled into a new set of solar cells.
Strano said, obtained by means of solar cells, the individual photoelectric conversion efficiency of 40%, which is transformed into the most efficient commercial solar cells twice. Theoretically, this conversion efficiency of solar cells can be close to 100%, but that, since the study is still in the “cradle”, the solution concentration of the formation of solar cells is very low, the conversion efficiency is low. As the experiment to further improve the conversion efficiency will be improved.