journal article·2026-05Open access

The Impact of Dust Particles on the Function of Screen‐Printed Triple‐Mesoscopic Perovskite Solar Cells

Kathryn Lacey, Sarah‐Jane Dunlop‐Potts, Carys Worsley, Rodrigo Garcia‐Rodriguez, Tom Dunlop, Declan Hughes, Krishna Seunarine, Matthew Davies, Trystan Watson

Small· Volume 22· Issue 29

Abstract

ABSTRACT Screen‐printed mesoporous carbon perovskite solar cells (m‐CPSCs) offer a low‐cost manufacturing approach that could significantly reduce upscaling costs, providing an accessible pathway to green energy production opening new opportunities in countries where this is currently cost‐prohibitive. Clean rooms represent a very expensive investment and overhead, presenting a significant barrier to reducing production cost. Despite this, very little research has been carried out to determine whether a clean room is essential to PSC manufacture. This study examines how organic dust particle contaminants (1–10 µm) impact screen‐printed m‐CPSCs. Unexpectedly, cells with contamination between layers showed no significant difference in PCE compared to pristine controls. Dust in pastes affected print quality more severely, negatively impacting the quality of subsequent layers and leading to inconsistencies in print quality, compounding problems further along in the manufacturing process if screens and pastes are not kept free from such contamination. These findings suggest that screen‐printed solar cells can be produced outside of clean rooms if high cleanliness standards are maintained during storage and print runs. This outcome is significant for low‐cost PSC printing, indicating that it may be possible to produce high performing modules in industrial setups without expensive clean room installation and management.
Source: crossref · Quality: baseline

Research context

OpenAlex topics: Perovskite Materials and Applications · TiO2 Photocatalysis and Solar Cells · Nanomaterials and Printing Technologies

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

SPECIFIC IKC Faculty of Science & Engineering Swansea University Swansea UK

AIM Faculty of Science & Engineering Swansea University Swansea UK

School of Chemistry and Physics University of KwaZulu‐Natal Durban South Africa

References (32)

Show source-provided references
1. 10.1002/pip.375010.1002/pip.3750 ↗
2. 10.3390/en1502064110.3390/en15020641 ↗
3. 10.1002/advs.20230399210.1002/advs.202303992 ↗
4. 10.1002/adfm.20240281610.1002/adfm.202402816 ↗
5. 10.1126/science.adk908910.1126/science.adk9089 ↗
6. 10.1038/s41560‐025‐01823‐810.1038/s41560‐025‐01823‐8 ↗
7. 10.1039/d5cc05474e10.1039/d5cc05474e ↗
8. 10.1038/ncomms1568410.1038/ncomms15684 ↗
9. 10.3390/ma1712300210.3390/ma17123002 ↗
10. 10.1016/j.joule.2020.09.01010.1016/j.joule.2020.09.010 ↗
11. 10.1002/admt.20250131310.1002/admt.202501313 ↗
12. 10.1002/solr.20240009310.1002/solr.202400093 ↗
13. 10.1021/acsami.2c0246310.1021/acsami.2c02463 ↗
14. Contamination Control: Problems and Prospects
15. 10.5772/856110.5772/8561 ↗
16. 10.1016/j.rser.2023.11353210.1016/j.rser.2023.113532 ↗
17. 10.1038/s41560‐018‐0219‐810.1038/s41560‐018‐0219‐8 ↗
18. 10.1039/D4TC01157K10.1039/D4TC01157K ↗
19. 10.1021/acsaem.3c0305610.1021/acsaem.3c03056 ↗
20. 10.1038/s43246‐025‐00993‐y10.1038/s43246‐025‐00993‐y ↗
21. 10.3390/ma1419585210.3390/ma14195852 ↗
22. 10.1016/j.solmat.2016.11.02910.1016/j.solmat.2016.11.029 ↗
23. 10.1016/j.jpowsour.2015.05.10610.1016/j.jpowsour.2015.05.106 ↗
24. 10.1002/adfm.20190088510.1002/adfm.201900885 ↗
25. 10.1002/adfm.20240195910.1002/adfm.202401959 ↗
26. 10.1007/s10853‐021‐06724‐110.1007/s10853‐021‐06724‐1 ↗
27. 10.1039/C6EE00462H10.1039/C6EE00462H ↗
28. 10.1002/aenm.20190413410.1002/aenm.201904134 ↗
29. 10.1002/pip.271610.1002/pip.2716 ↗
30. 10.1021/acsnano.6b0582510.1021/acsnano.6b05825 ↗
31. 10.3390/coatings1010100810.3390/coatings10101008 ↗
32. 10.1007/s11998‐019‐00291‐610.1007/s11998‐019‐00291‐6 ↗