Roll-to-roll printed silver nanowires for increased stability of flexible ITO-free organic solar cell modules

We report the stability test results of ITO-free OPV modules using roll-to-roll printed silver nanowire networks as front electrode.</p

The Challenge of Synthesizing Oligomers for Molecular Wires

Controlling the size of the oligomer and introducing functional groups at the ends of the oligomer that allow it to react with separate electrodes are critical issues when preparing materials for molecular wires. We demonstrate a general synthetic approach to oligophenylenevinylene (OPV) derivative molecules with a molecular length up to 9–10 nm which allow for the introduction of aromatic thioacetate functionality in fully conjugated oligomer systems. Oligomers containing 3–15 phenyl units were synthesized by step wise Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons (HWE) reactions of a bifunctional OPV-monomer, which demonstrated good control of the size of the OPVs. Workup after each reaction step ensures a high purity of the final products. End group functionalization was introduced as a last step

Incineration of organic solar cells: Efficient end of life management by quantitative silver recovery

Recovery of silver from the electrodes of roll-to-roll processed organic solar cells after incineration has been performed quantitatively by extraction with nitric acid. This procedure is more than 10 times faster than previous reports and the amount of acid needed for the extraction is reduced by a factor of 100-150. LCA studies show that the resulting environmental impacts from silver extraction of incinerated ashes are more favourable on almost all standard factors compared to extraction from shredded organic solar cells. The so lessened environmental impacts by efficient recovery fully justify the use of Ag as an electrode in scaled production of organic solar cells.</p