DataVXAdvanced MaterialsPaper
journal article·2022-05

Upcycling Silicon Photovoltaic Waste into Thermoelectrics

Jing Cao, Ying Sim, Xian Yi Tan, Jie Zheng, Sheau Wei Chien, Ning Jia, Kewei Chen, Yeow Boon Tay, Jin‐Feng Dong, Le Yang, Hong Kuan Ng, Hongfei Liu, Chee Kiang Ivan Tan, Guofeng Xie, Qiang Zhu, Zibiao Li, Gang Zhang, Lei Hu, Yun Zheng, Jianwei Xu, Qingyu Yan, Xian Jun Loh, Nripan Mathews, Jing Wu, Ady Suwardi

Advanced Materials· Volume 34· Issue 19
Publisher page
Source abstract

Abstract

Abstract Two decades after the rapid expansion of photovoltaics, the number of solar panels reaching end‐of‐life is increasing. While precious metals such as silver and copper are usually recycled, silicon, which makes up the bulk of a solar cells, goes to landfills. This is due to the defect‐ and impurity‐sensitive nature in most silicon‐based technologies, rendering it uneconomical to purify waste silicon. Thermoelectrics represents a rare class of material in which defects and impurities can be engineered to enhance the performance. This is because of the majority‐carrier nature, making it defect‐ and impurity‐tolerant. Here, the upcycling of silicon from photovoltaic (PV) waste into thermoelectrics is enabled. This is done by doping 1% Ge and 4% P, which results in a figure of merit (zT) of 0.45 at 873 K, the highest among silicon‐based thermoelectrics. The work represents an important piece of the puzzle in realizing a circular economy for photovoltaics and electronic waste.
Source: crossref · Quality: baseline

Research context

Electronic materials

OpenAlex topics: Advanced Thermoelectric Materials and Devices · Semiconductor materials and interfaces · Advancements in Battery Materials

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

Affiliations

Agency for Science, Technology and Research Institute of Materials Research and Engineering #08‐03, 2 Fusionopolis Way Singapore 138634 Singapore

Energy Research Institute, Nanyang Technological University (ERI@N) Research Techno Plaza, X‐Frontier Block Level 5, 50 Nanyang Drive Singapore 637553 Singapore

Singapore‐CEA Alliance for Research in Circular Economy (SCARCE) School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering 62 Nanyang Drive Singapore 637459 Singapore

School of Materials Science and Engineering Nanyang Technological University Singapore 639798 Singapore

School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Nanyang Technological University Singapore 639798 Singapore

Interdisciplinary Graduate School (IGS) Nanyang Technological University 50 Nanyang Avenue Singapore 639798 Singapore

Department of Materials Science and Engineering National University of Singapore Singapore 117575 Singapore

School of Materials Science and Engineering Hunan University of Science and Technology Xiangtan 411201 P. R. China

Institute of Sustainability for Chemicals, Energy and Environment (ISCE2) A*STAR 1 Pesek Road, Jurong Island Singapore 627833 Singapore

Institute of High Performance Computing 1 Fusionopolis Way, Connexis Singapore 138632 Singapore

Laboratory for Materials and Structures Tokyo Institute of Technology 4259 Nagatsuta, Midori‐ku Yokohama Kanagawa 226‐8503 Japan

Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Chemical Materials and Devices Ministry of Education Jianghan University Wuhan Hubei 430056 P. R. China

Funding

Science and Engineering Research Council

References (47)

Show source-provided references
1. 10.1038/s41560-020-0645-210.1038/s41560-020-0645-2 ↗
2. International Energy Agency Market Report Series Renewables 2017: Analysis and Forecasts to 2022 https://www.iea.org/reports/renewables-2017(accessed: June2021).
3. International Energy Agency IEA Report for the Clean Energy Ministerial Transforming Global Markets for Clean Energy Products Report—July 2010 https://www.iea.org/reports/transforming-global-markets-for-clean-energy-products(accessed: October2021).
4. Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE & Photovoltaics Report https://www.ise.fraunhofer.de/en/publications/studies/photovoltaics-report.html(accessed: November2020).
5. 10.1038/531435a10.1038/531435a ↗
6. 10.1016/j.rser.2019.04.02010.1016/j.rser.2019.04.020 ↗
7. 10.1002/aenm.20190415910.1002/aenm.201904159 ↗
8. 10.1038/s41893-020-0553-210.1038/s41893-020-0553-2 ↗
9. 10.1038/s41893-021-00737-z10.1038/s41893-021-00737-z ↗
10. 10.1038/s41563-020-0720-x10.1038/s41563-020-0720-x ↗
11. 10.1038/s41560-021-00805-w10.1038/s41560-021-00805-w ↗
12. 10.1038/s41563-020-00852-w10.1038/s41563-020-00852-w ↗
13. 10.1126/science.abe129210.1126/science.abe1292 ↗
14. 10.1126/science.aaz942610.1126/science.aaz9426 ↗
15. 10.1021/acs.chemrev.0c0002610.1021/acs.chemrev.0c00026 ↗
16. 10.1002/adma.20200593110.1002/adma.202005931 ↗
17. 10.1002/cnma.20210003310.1002/cnma.202100033 ↗
18. 10.1038/s41563-021-01109-w10.1038/s41563-021-01109-w ↗
19. 10.1039/D1TA05866E10.1039/D1TA05866E ↗
20. 10.1016/j.mtphys.2021.10051910.1016/j.mtphys.2021.100519 ↗
21. 10.1002/adma.20180707110.1002/adma.201807071 ↗
22. 10.1002/adma.20200561210.1002/adma.202005612 ↗
23. 10.1002/adma.20200478610.1002/adma.202004786 ↗
24. 10.1021/acsenergylett.1c0255310.1021/acsenergylett.1c02553 ↗
25. 10.1016/j.mtener.2022.10096410.1016/j.mtener.2022.100964 ↗
26. 10.1016/j.joule.2018.02.01610.1016/j.joule.2018.02.016 ↗
27. 10.1002/adma.20210685810.1002/adma.202106858 ↗
28. 10.1002/adma.20210257510.1002/adma.202102575 ↗
29. 10.1039/D0TC04903D10.1039/D0TC04903D ↗
30. 10.1021/acs.chemmater.0c0358110.1021/acs.chemmater.0c03581 ↗
31. 10.1002/adma.20210235610.1002/adma.202102356 ↗
32. 10.1038/s41563-021-01064-610.1038/s41563-021-01064-6 ↗
33. 10.1039/D1CS00347J10.1039/D1CS00347J ↗
34. 10.1073/pnas.171172511410.1073/pnas.1711725114 ↗
35. 10.1126/sciadv.abc072610.1126/sciadv.abc0726 ↗
36. 10.1103/PhysRev.124.142610.1103/PhysRev.124.1426 ↗
37. 10.1063/1.168939610.1063/1.1689396 ↗
38. 10.1038/s41560-017-0071-210.1038/s41560-017-0071-2 ↗
39. 10.1038/s41928-021-00622-910.1038/s41928-021-00622-9 ↗
40. 10.1016/j.jallcom.2018.09.02910.1016/j.jallcom.2018.09.029 ↗
41. 10.1002/admt.20170025610.1002/admt.201700256 ↗
42. 10.1088/0953-8984/21/39/39550210.1088/0953-8984/21/39/395502 ↗
43. 10.1088/1361-648X/aa8f7910.1088/1361-648X/aa8f79 ↗
44. 10.1063/5.000508210.1063/5.0005082 ↗
45. 10.1103/PhysRevLett.77.386510.1103/PhysRevLett.77.3865 ↗
46. 10.1103/PhysRevB.85.08520110.1103/PhysRevB.85.085201 ↗
47. 10.1039/C7EE02007D10.1039/C7EE02007D ↗