Metal-oxide Photovoltaic Cells Synthesized using Materials Abundant in the Martian Regolith
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Authors
Radosevich, Timothy
Bailey, Marguerite
Wald, Elliot
Date of Issue
2023-04-28
Type
Presentation
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Abstract
Solar cells were fabricated from iron containing minerals that are expected to be similar to those found in the Martian regolith: specular hematite, oolitic hematite, and hematite concretions. The solar cells were fabricated by electrophoretic deposition or drop casting of hematite nano-/micro-particles onto a fluorine-doped tin oxide substrate (FTO). Samples were tested in a wet cell configuration with a 0.5 M NaI and 0.05 M I2 redox mediator, a 0.1 M tetrabutylammonium hexafluorophosphate (TBAPF6) supporting electrolyte, an acetonitrile solvent, and a platinum (Pt) counter electrode. Current-Potential (iP) curves were obtained under 1 sun (0.5 AMU at 100 mW/cm2) of white light illumination. Specular hematite generated the highest power output of 3.5 μW/cm2 yielding a power conversion efficiency of 4.6x10-3%. Wavelength dependent solar cell efficiency was also characterized using incident photon conversion efficiency (IPCE) spectra, sample composition characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra, and surface morphology characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Preliminary results with electrolyte-free hematite solar cells will be discussed.