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Date Permissions Signed

7-18-2011

Date of Award

2011

Document Type

Masters Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Chemistry

First Advisor

Patrick, David L.

Second Advisor

Gilbertson, John D.

Third Advisor

Leger, Janelle

Abstract

Though the sun's energy is the world's most prominent renewable energy resource, technologies such as photovoltaics (PVs) have yet to become a significant factor in the energy market due in part to the sheer cost of unit deployment. Luminescent Solar Concentrators (LSCs) have been investigated since the late 1960s as a means of reducing the cost of PV arrays by replacing large areas of expensive PVs with cheaper materials such as glass or plastic. LSCs function by using fluorescent dyes embedded in a host matrix that absorb the sun's rays and redirects the light through total internal reflection to small strips of PVs where it is converted into electrical current. This thesis describes a method by which LSC efficiencies can be improved through the use of modern materials and oriented fluorophores; allowing the direction in which the light is emitted by the dyes to controlled, reducing the primary mechanisms for light loss prevalent in other LSC designs. Projections of this technology suggest that further development of oriented fluorophores LSCs holds the potential of drastically reducing the world's dependence on carbon based energy.

Type

Text

DOI

https://doi.org/10.25710/cgpc-gk55

Publisher

Western Washington University

OCLC Number

743820533

Subject – LCSH

Thin films--Electric properties; Photovoltaic power generation; Solar energy--Research

Format

application/pdf

Genre/Form

masters theses

Language

English

Rights

Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this thesis for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author's written permission.

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