Fabrication of Nano-Carbon-Based Sustainable Perovskite Solar Cells

Abstract

The rising need for sustainable energy solutions has fuelled considerable research into novel technologies that harness solar energy for efficient and scalable energy storage. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have emerged as feasible candidates for these applications due to their unique properties, such as high surface area, better electrical conductivity, and chemical stability.This report focuses on the design and fabrication of cost-effective nano-carbon-based perovskite solar cells (PSCs) and discusses their potential for clean energy generation and storage. This experimental study shows a novel technique to increase the sustainability the conventional fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate with an Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) derived from electronic waste and incorporating nanocarbon based-graphene with solution-based techniques. This addition serves as a good basis for the ITO coating, aids charge transport in the perovskite solar cell, and promotes uniform covering maximum electrical conductivity, and transparency. Being the transparent conducting electrode, the CNTs is infused with the upcycled ITO coated glass and was included in the perovskite solar cell architecture, which replaces the traditional ITO electrode, lowering material costs, and improving the circular economy for energy storage devices, and a cleaner energy future.The ITO extraction process entails recovering indium and tin from mobile phones using an environmentally friendly and economical chemical etching process using hydrochloric acid (HCl) to remove the ITO layer. To ensure the purity and structural integrity of the ITO nanoparticles, they were rigorously characterized using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. After depositing a perovskite- CNTs precursor solution on the ITO layer glass substrate, the light-absorbing layer was annealed. Electron transport and hole-blocking layers were then deposited utilizing solution processing techniques using the PEDOT: PSS and metal electrodes were deposited to complete the device manufacturing. The current-voltage (J-V) relationship was used to compute the open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current density, fill factor (FF), and power conversion efficiency (PCE) of a solar cell. Electrical characterization allow for the calculation of solar cell performance metrics such as short-circuit current (Isc), short-circuit current density (Jsc), and open-circuit voltage (Voc). These findings imply that employing e-waste-derived ITO on graphene substrates to create high-efficiency perovskite solar cells is a realistic option. This research provides a sustainable and cost-effective method for producing high-performance perovskite solar cells by eco-friendly upcycling e-waste for ITO extraction, addressing the critical issue of e-trash management. Keywords Perovskite solar cells, CNTs, sustainable energy, energy conversion.