Life Cycle Assessment of Gratzel-type cell production for non conventional photovoltaics from novel Organic Dyes

In the context of a constant energy demand growth, the interest of the scientific community is progressively moving towards renewable energy sources. Among these, photovoltaics has a prominent role. With the aim of overcoming the limits of silicon production, research turned itself to the development of new photovoltaic technologies based on alternative materials, such as organic compounds. The Dye Sensitized Solar Cells, also known as Grätzel-type cells, have attracted much interest, especially in the last decade. This is due to their potentially lower economic and environmental costs compared with traditional silicon-based cells even though they are not efficient enough yet to be industrially competitive. In this study we present the preliminary results obtained through a multidisciplinary project for the design and synthesis of new organic sensitizers for solar cells together with a life cycle assessment of a Grätzel-type panel production. The life cycle analysis has been developed based on preliminary and estimated production data along all the project stages in order to evaluate environmental impacts and energy consumption associated with the production process. This analysis will be pivotal in understanding the environmental dynamics, the benefits and drawbacks associated with the production of dye sensitized solar cells in comparison with other competitor photovoltaic technologies.