PEDAL: Plasmonic Enhancement and Directionality of Emission of Advanced Luminescent Solar Devices

Research Pillar: Climate Action and Sustainability 

Project Name/Title/Acronym: PEDAL: Plasmonic enhancement and directionality of emission of advanced luminescent solar devices

Funding Body: European Research Council

Project Timeframe: April 2015 - March 2020

Key Output(s): Twitter: @tcdsolar

                          Publications can be found here

Project Description:

PEDAL is funded by the European Research Council (Project No.: 639760). It proposed a disruptive PV technology where record increases in efficiency are achieved and costs reduced. PEDAL will concentrate both direct and diffuse solar radiation in a static building component delivering not only breakthroughs in solar device efficiencies but also the development of unique building integrated components. This will be developed through 3 themes:

1. Plasmonic Enhancement of LSC (PLSC);
2. Plasmonic Enhancement of LDS layers (PLDS); and,
3. Upscaled building integrated solar devices (PLSC & PLDS).

The objectives of PEDAL are:

• To engineer composites structures (luminescent species and MNPs in polymer) for PLSC and PLDS.
• To achieve record efficiency in LSC and LDS by exploiting plasmonic coupling phenomena between metal nanoparticles and luminescent species to enhance emission and alignment of MNP for directional emission.
• To develop the first static building integrated PLSC component capable of achieving a concentration factor of 3 or more in diffuse solar radiation.
• To develop the first static building integrated PLDS layer on a commercial PV module capable of achieving an increase in PV efficiency.
• To investigate balance of system components such as microinverters to enable control and management of PV energy generation through the buildings demand side management systems.