OPTIMIZING ANNUAL ENERGY OUTPUT OF LUMINESCENT SOLAR CONCENTRATORS FOR BUILDING-INTEGRATED PHOTOVOLTAICS

Thu, 27 Feb 2025 13:18:13 -0500

Dr. Diana-Andra Borca-Tascuic, professor, mechanical, aerospace and nuclear engineering department, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, will be visiting on Friday, February 28, to give a seminar. Please see seminar abstract and her biography below.

Abstract:

Building-integrated photovoltaics are part of the engineering solutions portfolio being developed to address the climate crisis and meet the rapidly evolving decarbonization legislation worldwide. The luminescent solar concentrator (LSC) is a niche solar concentrator technology with the potential to be integrated into building-integrated photovoltaics. It consists of a transparent plastic sheet embedded with a luminescent species and lined with solar cells along its edges. Acting as a waveguide, it directs light

from its larger surface onto much smaller-area photovoltaics. This technology offers

several advantages, including better utilization of solar cells, effective performance in diffuse light conditions, and the ability to serve as a multifunctional envelope for vertical walls in the built environment. However, its single-digit efficiency remains a major barrier to commercialization, primarily due to escape cone losses through the light-receiving surface. Additionally, the lack of comprehensive annual energy production estimates in the literature limits understanding of its practical potential.

This talk examines the performance of wedge-shaped LSCs utilizing inorganic luminescent phosphors, which enhance energy capture at incidence angles that conventional solar panels do not effectively utilize. This behavior is studied experimentally by comparing the performance of a solar cell embedded in an LSC to one directly exposed to illumination. Using laboratory-measured power ratios and direct normal irradiance data from two case studies—Phoenix, AZ, and Albany, NY—the annual energy production for direct-beam irradiance in wedge-shaped LSCs mounted on vertical walls was determined.

Bio:

Diana-Andra Borca-Tasciuc is a professor in the mechanical, aerospace, and nuclear engineering department at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where she has been a faculty member since 2006. She holds a B.S. in physics from Bucharest University and a M.S. and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles. She is a recipient of the 2008 NSF CAREER Award and the 2013 Fulbright Scholarship. Her research interests lie in energy conversion, with a current focus on power harvesting micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), solar energy integration in building envelopes, and nanoscale thermal transport processes. Her work spans both fundamental and applied research, leading to over 100 journal articles and conference proceedings, as well as several patents and patent applications.

Light refreshments will be provided.

See you there!