Recycled or Bio-Based Solvents for the Synthesis of ZnO Nanoparticles: Characterization and Validation in Organic Solar Cells

Author:

Albonetti Cristiano1ORCID,Alkarsifi Riva2,El Qacemi Virginie2,Dhuiege Benjamin2,Ruani Giampiero1ORCID,Seri Mirko1ORCID

Affiliation:

1. National Research Council (CNR)—Institute of Nanostructured Materials (ISMN), Via P. Gobetti 101, 40129 Bologna, Italy

2. GenesInk, 39 Avenue Gaston Imbert, 13790 Rousset, France

Abstract

Among solution-processable metal oxides, zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticle inks are widely used in inverted organic solar cells for the preparation, at relatively low temperatures (<120 °C), of highly efficient electron-transporting layers. There is, however, a recent interest to develop more sustainable and less impacting methods/strategies for the preparation of ZnO NPs with controlled properties and improved performance. To this end, we report here the synthesis and characterization of ZnO NPs obtained using alternative reaction solvents derived from renewable or recycled sources. In detail, we use (i) recycled methanol (r-MeOH) to close the loop and minimize wastes or (ii) bioethanol (b-EtOH) to prove the effectiveness of a bio-based solvent. The effect of r-MeOH and b-EtOH on the optical, morphological, and electronic properties of the resulting ZnO NPs, both in solution and thin-films, is investigated, discussed, and compared to an analogous reference material. Moreover, to validate the properties of the resulting materials, we have prepared PTB7:PC71BM-based solar cells containing the different ZnO NPs as a cathode interlayer. Power conversion efficiencies comparable to the reference system (≈7%) were obtained, validating the proposed alternative and more sustainable approach.

Funder

Grant “Italian Energy Materials Acceleration Platform-IEMAP

European Union—NextGenerationEU under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan

Publisher

MDPI AG

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