Naturally Photoactive Biopolymers. The basic aim of this project is to assess the viability of using semiconducting biopolymers from the melanin family of macromolecules in photoactive device based applications. In order to do this, key optical, structural, electronic, and photochemical properties will be assessed on thin films in the solid state. The melanins are the only known semiconducting biopolymers, and are non-toxic, biocompatible and biodegradable. Their use as ?active? materials in ....Naturally Photoactive Biopolymers. The basic aim of this project is to assess the viability of using semiconducting biopolymers from the melanin family of macromolecules in photoactive device based applications. In order to do this, key optical, structural, electronic, and photochemical properties will be assessed on thin films in the solid state. The melanins are the only known semiconducting biopolymers, and are non-toxic, biocompatible and biodegradable. Their use as ?active? materials in solid state or photo-electrochemical devices has never before been suggested. Specifically, these materials could be used as the light harvesting components in dye sensitised Gratzel cells, or, as the donor material in soft solid photovoltaic junctions. The melanins are also a key class of biomolecules (their involvement in skin cancers is well documented), and hence, any advancement in our understanding of their functions and properties could have biological importance.Read moreRead less
Photoactive Semiconducting Biopolymers. The basic aims of this project are to elucidate, manipulate, and utilise the unique chemical and physical properties of a class of biopolymers called the melanins. These materials are the only known solid state semiconducting biopolymers, and are non-toxic, biocompatible, and biodegradable. Their use as active components in biomimetic soft electonic, optoelectronic or photovoltaic devices, has not hitherto been demonstrated. It is anticipated that the k ....Photoactive Semiconducting Biopolymers. The basic aims of this project are to elucidate, manipulate, and utilise the unique chemical and physical properties of a class of biopolymers called the melanins. These materials are the only known solid state semiconducting biopolymers, and are non-toxic, biocompatible, and biodegradable. Their use as active components in biomimetic soft electonic, optoelectronic or photovoltaic devices, has not hitherto been demonstrated. It is anticipated that the key outcomes from the project will be a demonstration of biopolymer-based photoelectrochemical and solid-state p-i-n solar cells, and an improved understanding of the physics and chemistry of these important biological macromolecules.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0668257
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,200,000.00
Summary
Combinatorial Deposition and Characterisation Facility for New Alloy Thin Film Materials. Australia's competitive edge in materials research is key to maintaining our economic prosperity. Infrastructure that enables our researchers to synthesize novel materials with precise control over composition and structure is crucial to maintaining our strengths in this field. The proposed infrastructure will accelerate progress on the preparation and characterisation of new alloy and nanostructured materi ....Combinatorial Deposition and Characterisation Facility for New Alloy Thin Film Materials. Australia's competitive edge in materials research is key to maintaining our economic prosperity. Infrastructure that enables our researchers to synthesize novel materials with precise control over composition and structure is crucial to maintaining our strengths in this field. The proposed infrastructure will accelerate progress on the preparation and characterisation of new alloy and nanostructured materials and will pay dividends by providing early access to the best materials. This will give our energy technology, biomedical engineering, tooling, electronics and mining industries a competitive edge. Access to this new generation equipment will enhance our pool of highly skilled materials technologists.Read moreRead less
First-Principles Engineering of Advanced Multicomponent Materials for Clean, Energy Efficient Thermoelectric and Catalytic Technologies. The quantum mechanical, first-principles calculations for studying advanced multicomponent materials and surfaces of high current technological interest will produce significant results as well as fundamental knowledge of key mechanisms that will aid in the design and tailoring of new catalytic and thermoelectric materials. The project is directly relevant to ....First-Principles Engineering of Advanced Multicomponent Materials for Clean, Energy Efficient Thermoelectric and Catalytic Technologies. The quantum mechanical, first-principles calculations for studying advanced multicomponent materials and surfaces of high current technological interest will produce significant results as well as fundamental knowledge of key mechanisms that will aid in the design and tailoring of new catalytic and thermoelectric materials. The project is directly relevant to the designated priority area - Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries. It will involve collaboration with leading international experts, thus enhancing Australia's knowledge base and research capacity. This clearly has immediate benefits through the transfer and propagation of cutting-edge knowledge and skills to students and post-docs.Read moreRead less
Understanding and controlling of photoferroelectricity for photoenergy uses. The project seeks to develop high performance photoferroelectric materials for a wide range of photoenergy conversion technologies like photovoltaics and photocatalytics. For the past 50 years, ferroelectric photovoltaics have only been an academic curiosity due to their low energy conversion efficiency relative to the popular semiconductor photovoltaics. This project aims to unlock the potential of ferroelectric photov ....Understanding and controlling of photoferroelectricity for photoenergy uses. The project seeks to develop high performance photoferroelectric materials for a wide range of photoenergy conversion technologies like photovoltaics and photocatalytics. For the past 50 years, ferroelectric photovoltaics have only been an academic curiosity due to their low energy conversion efficiency relative to the popular semiconductor photovoltaics. This project aims to unlock the potential of ferroelectric photovoltaics by introducing an ion co-substitution, which is coupled with electron-pinning, into promising ferroelectric materials and investigating the resultant photo-excited electronic and electrical properties. It is anticipated that the outcomes from this proposed project will provide a solution for optimal ferroelectric visible light absorption to achieve high power conversion efficiency in ferroelectric materials for practical photoenergy applications.Read moreRead less
Cadmium telluride/Germanium (CdTe/Ge) tandem-junction solar cells for efficiency enhancement in thin-film photovoltaics. The purpose of this project is to improve the efficiency of large-area, thin-film CdTe solar cells by using them in a tandem arrangement with thin-film Ge cells. An increase of 25 per cent in efficiency appears possible, which would greatly improve the prospects for cost-competitive photovoltaic power generation.
Kesterite solar cell coated architectural stainless steel. This project aims to develop cost-effective, high-performance kesterite architectural stainless steel coated with solar cells for application in roofing, skin and facades of smart buildings. The project will integrate expertise in producing kesterite solar cells with expertise in manufacturing new steel to eliminate toxic, scarce materials and high-cost processes employed in conventional solar-driven steel. The initial target of the proj ....Kesterite solar cell coated architectural stainless steel. This project aims to develop cost-effective, high-performance kesterite architectural stainless steel coated with solar cells for application in roofing, skin and facades of smart buildings. The project will integrate expertise in producing kesterite solar cells with expertise in manufacturing new steel to eliminate toxic, scarce materials and high-cost processes employed in conventional solar-driven steel. The initial target of the project would be to increase kesterite cell efficiency to beyond 10 per cent, and ultimately beyond 17 per cent, but still at a low cost.Read moreRead less
Increase in Photocatalytic Activity of TiO2 through Intervalence Charge Transfer. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) has many proposed and realised applications in energy and the environment. The main problem that has hindered development and commercialisation of devices using TiO2 is its low photocatalytic activity, which results from its poor absorption of visible and infrared light. Most researchers modify the properties of TiO2 by conventional electrochemical methods to improve its performance but the ....Increase in Photocatalytic Activity of TiO2 through Intervalence Charge Transfer. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) has many proposed and realised applications in energy and the environment. The main problem that has hindered development and commercialisation of devices using TiO2 is its low photocatalytic activity, which results from its poor absorption of visible and infrared light. Most researchers modify the properties of TiO2 by conventional electrochemical methods to improve its performance but these attempts have been of limited success. The present research involves a completely new approach to the problem, which is based on the method used in the heat treatment of sapphire to improve its colour. This approach uses a phenomenon involving the modification of the optical properties to improve its absorption of light.Read moreRead less
Design Of Practical Passive Cooling Radiators Utilising Spectrally Selective Covers And Surfaces. Radiative cooling offers a means to cool buildings sustainably without complex and costly heat pumps or air conditioners. Units similar to solar panels can be designed with surfaces which radiate mostly into the 8 - 12 micron atmospheric window, which has a radiance much less than for other wavelengths. Commercial development has been limited by problems associated with the degradation, performance ....Design Of Practical Passive Cooling Radiators Utilising Spectrally Selective Covers And Surfaces. Radiative cooling offers a means to cool buildings sustainably without complex and costly heat pumps or air conditioners. Units similar to solar panels can be designed with surfaces which radiate mostly into the 8 - 12 micron atmospheric window, which has a radiance much less than for other wavelengths. Commercial development has been limited by problems associated with the degradation, performance or cost of radiator surfaces. This project seeks to improve both performance and durability with innovative use of alternative materials and sputtered coatings suitable for mass manufacture, and to test the outdoor performance of laboratory produced radiative plates.Read moreRead less
NANOSCALE NETWORKS OF ORGANIC POLYMER/C60 FULLERENE BLENDS FOR HIGH EFFICIENCY SOLAR CELLS. Recent demonstrations of increased efficiencies in polymer-fullerene blend plastic films provide the prospect of low cost photovoltaic elements with the potential for widespread application. Further progress with these materials is strongly indicated. We will characterise these materials at the nanoscale to make further improvements in film morphology and employ our expertise in experimental investigation ....NANOSCALE NETWORKS OF ORGANIC POLYMER/C60 FULLERENE BLENDS FOR HIGH EFFICIENCY SOLAR CELLS. Recent demonstrations of increased efficiencies in polymer-fullerene blend plastic films provide the prospect of low cost photovoltaic elements with the potential for widespread application. Further progress with these materials is strongly indicated. We will characterise these materials at the nanoscale to make further improvements in film morphology and employ our expertise in experimental investigation of transport properties to gain a more complete understanding of the electronic and photonic processes underlying photovoltaic efficiency. Australia is ideally situated geographically and has a strong tradition of inventive engineering from which we can benefit and capitalise significantly on further improvements in the materials to be investigated.Read moreRead less