The Luminescent Solar Concentrator: Shining New Lights on an Old Idea (Prof. Michael Debije)

Nanoseminar in Chemistry & Materials by: Prof. Michael Debije, Stimuli-responsive Functional Materials and Devices Dept. Chemical Engineering & Chemistry and Eindhoven Institute for Renewable Energy Systems (EIRES), Eindhoven University of Technology

Title: The Luminescent Solar Concentrator: Shining New Lights on an Old Idea
Date: Thursday 25 May, 2023
Hosted by Prof. Daniel Ruiz Molina, Nanostructured Functional Materials Group Leader.

The NanoSeminars are a line of seminars established by the ICN2 to provide a platform for the exchange of knowledge and ideas, based around a lecture by a world-class invited researcher. They bring to you three thematic series: Nano in Medicine & Health; Nano in Physics; and, Nano in Chemistry and Materials. The series about Medicine & Health is a joint initiative between the Nanomedicine Lab at the University of Manchester and the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2).

More info at: https://icn2.cat/en/outreach/nanosemi...

Abstract of the NanoSeminar:
The luminescent solar concentrator (LSC) concept was first proposed in the late 1970s as a lower-cost alternative to the then-expensive use of silicon-based photovoltaic panels. The dramatic decrease in the costs associated with solar panels and modest efficiencies reported in the LSC has decreased the initial impetus for using LSCs as traditional solar energy generators. However, the LSC offers many alternative opportunities for deployment owing to their attractive coloring, consistent performance in both direct and indirect light, physical robustness, and their capability of being produced in practically any form or shape. All these features suggest the devices could be successfully used in urban settings inappropriate for PV panels, functioning as noise barriers, bus shelters, kiosks, and urban furnishings. Recent work has suggested repurposing the device as electricity generating self-lighting signage, for hydrogen production, as ‘smart’ windows, for horticulture, and for generation of fine chemicals from sunlight. In this talk I will discuss my fifteen years of research on the basic LSC concept. I will discuss the use of liquid crystals to both improve the performance of the devices as well as generate new LSC-based devices able to adapt their color and transparency in response to changing external conditions. The goal of this talk is to prompt discussion of the wide potential application space of these aesthetically pleasing devices and hopefully entice new researchers to address the remaining challenges in the devices to drive them towards commercialization.

CV: Dr. Debije received his MS in High Energy Physics from Iowa State University (USA) and his PhD in Biophysics from the University of Rochester (USA) in 2000. After doing a postdoc in the Radiation Chemistry group at the Delt University of Technology, he joined the SFD group at the TU Eindhoven in 2004. He is now an Associate Professor responsible for SFD research on Energy systems. He has been working on LSC devices for 15 years as well as responsive direct ink written soft robots based on liquid crystal elastomers.