High-value organic solvent recovery and reuse in perovskite solar cell manufacturing

Recycling high-value organic solvents is crucial but challenging in various industries. For example, the perovskite solar cell (PSC), a rising star of photovoltaic industry, calls for proper management of solvents like <i>N</i>,<i>N</i>-dimethylformamide (DMF). Traditional solvent recovery methods are often less effective, costly, and energy-intensive. To address this, we developed a multistage air-gap membrane distillation (MAMD) system that efficiently recovered DMF from waste solutions using industrial waste heat. Our MAMD system achieved a DMF enrichment factor up to 314 (increasing the concentration from 0.3 to 94.2 weight %) and stable operation over 60 hours. The recovered DMF (94.2 weight %) was used in perovskite minimodule fabrication, achieving a certified stabilized power output of 19.97%. The narrow efficiency deviation, state-of-the-art power conversion efficiency, and small hysteresis demonstrated the viability of using the recovered DMF in industrial fabrication. These results demonstrate the potential of our MAMD system to minimize the environmental footprint and promote sustainable PSC manufacturing.