Today’s Solutions: March 28, 2024

Solar energy is becoming more affordable and easier to produce every day. As the market grows, so too is the field of research. Solar scientists have been working with perovskites, a family of mineral and ceramic materials that are a top contender to replace silicon as the next level up in photovoltaic materials. The problem is that they are enormously difficult to manufacture on a large scale. 

A new AI system, though, uses improved machine learning that could make perovskites the next step in solar evolution. 

The solution to perovskites 

Perovskites are layered crystalline compounds whose atoms form a distinctive crystal lattice. Perovskite photovoltaic cells showed enormous promise in labs, where they were made using a spin-coating technique. The material can be used to make panels that are thinner and lighter, have greater efficiency, are less expensive, and are easier to transport and install. However, making a couple of perovskite cells in the lab is one thing. Manufacturing is another. Spin-coating is not a practical method for large-scale manufacturing. 

Particularly, there are too many variables to consider for perovskite at the manufacturing level, such as the composition of the starting materials, the temperature, the humidity, the speed of the processing path, and the methods of curing the material. Perovskite has a lot of different compound compositions, and this makes it hard to consistently work with. 

A new AI system developed by researchers from MIT and Stanford uses machine learning to solve this problem. The new program includes raw data and, unusually, incorporates human experience. This includes the experimenters’ qualitative observations of the test samples and experiments from other researchers. 

A great turnaround to a new generation

The new machine learning in this AI has enabled more accurate manufacturing of perovskite cells and given it an energy conversion efficiency of 18.5 percent, which puts it at a competitive level for the market today. 

Many solar companies are already gearing up to start producing perovskite cells. Many of them are still working out the specifics of how to manufacture them at scale, and now, with the new AI from MIT and Stanford, the process could soon be streamlined to make perovskite the next generation of solar energy. 

Source Study: MIT News Engineers enlist AI to help scale up advanced solar cell manufacturing | MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Solutions News Source Print this article
More of Today's Solutions

Rowing against the current: Botswana’s women safari guides inspire and empower

In the calm of Botswana's Okavango Delta, where the morning sun creates a golden glow on the water's surface, an amazing metamorphosis is occurring. ...

Read More

The future of healing: 3D printing skin directly onto open wounds

Pennsylvania State University researchers achieved a major medical science breakthrough by being the first team ever to 3D print real human skin tissue directly ...

Read More

These solar-powered barges can scoop up 50 tons of plastic from rivers each day

While removing the plastic waste that currently contaminates the ocean today will be crucial for protecting marine ecosystems, it is arguably more important that ...

Read More

A bold step towards climate action and job creation: The American Climate Corps

The White House announced the creation of the American Climate Corps, a breakthrough program that will transform the climate action landscape. This ambitious project ...

Read More