These new compounds, unlike other materials that make up solar cells and which originate from rare, expensive and toxic elements, can be obtained from some of the most common elements on Earth.
The mineral pyrite (known as "fool's gold") was known to the ancient Romans and has challenged gold seekers for generations - but now it is helping researchers from Oregon State University to discover similar compounds that offer new, cheap and promising options for obtaining solar energy.
These new compounds, unlike other materials that make up solar cells and which originate from rare, expensive and toxic elements, can be obtained from some of the most common elements on Earth. The research findings were published in the scientific journal Advanced Energy Materials.
The iron mineral pyrite itself has little value as a compound for future solar energy development, the scientists note. However, for more than a quarter of a century it was known to have several desirable properties that made it an interesting source for solar energy development, and which also spurred the current research.
"We've known for a long time that the mineral pyrite is an interesting material for its solar properties, but it hasn't really worked," said Douglas Keszler, a chemistry professor at Oregon State University. "We didn't really know why this was happening, so we decided to look at the material again. In this process, we discovered a number of different materials similar to pyrite, where most of its advantages lie and its disadvantages are absent. "There is still effort and research to be invested in order to integrate these materials into practical solar cells, " notes the lead researcher. "And yet, these materials are extremely promising."
Pyrite was of interest in the field of solar energy due to the fact that it has a great ability to absorb solar energy, it is very common in nature and can be used in the form of thin layers 2000 times more than its competing materials, such as silicon. However, one of its biggest drawbacks was the inefficient conversion of solar energy into electricity.
In the new study, the scientists discovered why this is so - in the process of preparing solar cells, a significant amount of heat is needed, the pyrite begins to break down and create by-products that inhibit the reception of electricity. In light of this new understanding, the researchers set out to look for other compounds that have the same abilities as pyrite, but ones that don't break down. one of them was
Iron-silicon-sulphide. "Iron is probably the cheapest naturally occurring element in the world, silicon is second, and sulfur is practically everywhere," explains the lead researcher. "These compounds will be stable, safe and will not disintegrate. The researchers continue the development of these materials and intend to find even better types of them.
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They actually don't use the pyrite itself but learned from him about the process and how to find the appropriate materials.
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