Green Solvent Engineering for Sustainable Recovery and Circular Use of Perovskite Solar Cells

Abstract

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) offer a transformative path for harvesting renewable solar energy, yet their long-term sustainability relies upon addressing lead toxicity through circular economy principles, with recycling as a key strategy to overcome environmental hazards and recover valuable materials. This approach shows a critical pathway for mitigating hazardous contamination while reclaiming valuable materials. In this paper, a high-efficiency recycling procedure has been proposed on degraded PSCs with the help of a layer-by-layer solvent extraction procedure, with the assistance of green solvents like ethyl acetate (EA) and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). EA and DMSO were selected based on their complementary roles in the recovery strategy for PSCs. EA facilitates dual recovery by selective extraction and phase separation, while DMSO, being a well-established solvent for perovskite precursor synthesis, enhances dissolution and enables efficient material recovery. This approach enables the systematic recovery of gold (Au) electrode, spiro-OMeTAD layer, perovskite, and indium tin oxide (ITO) coated glass substrate. The quality of the recovered materials is verified by using a combination of X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-visible spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and it was observed that their morphological and photophysical properties are preserved after recycling. Moreover, PSCs fabricated using these recycled components achieved a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 16.03%, which is a retention of over 90% of the performance of the fresh device with a material recovery rate exceeding 95%. This study creates a commercially feasible, environment-friendly framework of PSCs recycling and assists in significantly mitigating the environmental impact of lead-based photovoltaics.