• International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing-Green Technology
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• v.5 no.5
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• pp.643-650
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• 2018

A self-powered electrochromic device was fabricated on an indium tin oxide-polyethylene naphthalate flexible substrate using a dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) as a self-harvesting source; the electrochromic device was naturally bleached and operated under outdoor light conditions. The color of the organic electrochromic polymer, poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate, was shifted from pale blue to deep blue with an antimony tin oxide film as a charge-balanced material. Electrochromic performance was enhanced by secondary doping using dimethyl sulfoxide. As a result, the device showed stable switching behavior with a high transmittance change difference of 40% at its specific wavelength of 630 nm for 6 hrs. To improve the efficiency of the solar cell, 1.0 wt.% of Ag NWs in the photoanode was applied to the $TiO_2$ photoanode. It resulted in an efficiency of 3.3%, leading to an operating voltage of 0.7 V under xenon lamp conditions. As a result, we built a standalone self-harvesting electrochromic system with the performance of transmittance switching of 29% at 630 nm, by connecting with two solar cells in a device. Thus, a self-harvesting and flexible device was fabricated to operate automatically under the irradiated/dark conditions.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2024

Direct use of sunlight through the glass windows is an efficient way to reduce the energy consumption related to the heating, cooling, and lighting. Introduction of near-infrared modulating properties through colloidal doped metal oxide nanocrystals into the classical electrochromic materials accelerates the development of next-generation electrochromic devices. There has been a steady enhancement in the performance of electrochromic devices, necessitating a review of the recent progress in next-generation electrochromic devices employing doped metal oxide nanocrystals. This review provides an overview of the current developments in next-generation electrochromic smart windows utilizing colloidal doped metal oxide nanocrystals, with a focus on the key factors for achieving these advanced windows. Colloidal doped metal oxide nanocrystals are a crucial component in realizing and bringing to market the next generation of electrochromic windows, though further research and development are still required in this regard.

• Land and Housing Review
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.131-140
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• 2022

A smart window is a new building material that can realize energy savings in a building. Smart windows can freely adjust Visible Light Transmittance (VLT) and solar gain coefficient (g-value) according to the situation. Smart windows include such technologies as Electrochromic (EC), Suspended Particle Device (SPD), and Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystal (PDLC). Recent research on building energy savings through the VLT and g-value control functions of smart windows is being actively conducted and meaningful results are being drawn. However, since most of the research is focused on energy savings, research on the indoor environment is somewhat lacking. A building is a space where people live and the comfort of life should be prioritized before energy savings. Therefore, in this study, analysis on the daylight performance of an office space was carried out. Through green building standards such as LEED, BREEAM, CASBEE, and G-SEED, the daylight performance was reviewed according to VLT value changes of the smart window. In addition, a study was conducted on the VLT range of the electrochromic façade that can maintain a comfortable indoor environment. The smart window used electrochromic control with a wide range of VLT. The study showed that the minimum VLT of a smart window that can satisfy G-SEED is 25% or more. In addition, it was found that the VLT change of the electrochromic smart window did not significantly affect the uniformity of the room. When the LEED standard was applied, the minimum VLT value of the electrochromic smart window that must be maintained according to each orientation of the building was derived.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2023

According to the recent global warming, it is necessary to use energy efficiently together with eco-friendly energy. The development of alternative technologies is requisite for managing the current energy and climate crises. In this regard, "smart windows," which can control solar radiation, can be used to mitigate energy demands. Electrochromic devices (ECDs) effectively control the amount of solar energy reaching commercial and other living areas and maintain climate conditions via color modulation in response to small external stimuli, such as temperature and light irradiation. However, the performance and the stability of ECDs depend on the state of the electrolyte and sealing of the device. To resolve the aforementioned issues, an ECD was manufactured by using a poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)-based gel polymer electrolyte (GPE), and a laminating method was used to adequately seal the ECD. The concentrations of PMMA, acetonitrile (ACN), and ferrocene (Fc) were controlled to optimize the composition of the GPE to achieve an enhanced electrochromic performance. The fabricated GPE-based ECD afforded high optical contrast (~81.92%), with high electrochromic stability up to 10,000 cycles. Moreover, the lamination method employing the GPE could be used to fabricate large-area ECDs.

• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.187-195
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• 2022

WO₃ thin films were synthesized by electrodeposition, and their electrochromic properties were investigated. The application of static voltage produced WO₃ films with a smooth, compact surface morphology, and the film thickness linearly increased with the application time. The thicker film showed a strong color contrast but a slow color-switching speed. High-temperature heat treatment exceeding 300 ℃ induced a phase transformation from an amorphous to a monoclinic structure and resulted in degraded electrochromic performance. Furthermore, the optimized WO₃ thin films demonstrated their potential application as electrochromic boards for writing and erasing letters using a simple modified 3D printer in a rapid, accurate process

• Journal of the Korean Solar Energy Society
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.75-84
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• 2018

The most crucial point of reducing building energy is application of high performance envelope. The amount of heat exchange through window is highest in comparison of other envelopes so that heat exchange through window influence directly with building energy consumption. The window energy performance can be define with thermal, leakage and optical performance. In previous study we can confirmed that not only thermal performance but also optical performance are considered, 11% to 15% of building energy consumption can be reduced. Smart window system has potential of energy saving so that many industry field use smart window system including architectural area and these aspect causes smart window market continuous growth year by year. In this study, building energy consumption has been analyzed which consist of smart window that dynamically control optical states. The consideration of standard commercial building model for research, the reference medium size commercial building model of DOE (Department Of Energy, USA) has been used. The building energy simulation result of 4 axis in 8 regions in Korea shows 8% to 22% reduction of building energy consumption by application of smart window system.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.65 no.2
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• pp.125-132
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• 2021

An electrochromic nickel oxide thin film was fabricated on a flexible PET/ITO substrate using a nanocrystallite- dispersed coating sol and bar coater. Nanocrystalline NiOx of 3-4 nm crystallite size was first synthesized by base precipitation and thermal conversion. This NiOx nanocrystallite powder was mechanically dispersed in an alcoholic solvent mixed with a silane binder to prepare a coating sol for thin film. This sol method is different from the normal sol-gel method in that it does not require the conversion of precursor by heat treatment. Therefore, this method provides a very facile method to prepare NiOx thin films on any kind of substrate and it can be easily applied to mass production. The electrochromic performance of this NiOx thin film on PET/ITO electrode with a thickness of about 400 nm was investigated in a nonaqueous LiClO4 electrolyte solution by cyclic voltammetric and repeated chronoamperometric measurements in conjunction with spectrophotometry. The visible light modulation of 44% and the colorization efficiency of 41 ㎠/C at 550 nm were obtained at the step potentials of -0.8/+1.2 V vs Ag and a duration of 30 s.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.102-107
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• 2016

We demonstrate the electrochromic properties of $TiO_2$ nanotubes prepared by an anodization process and investigate the effects of heat treatment and viologen incorporation on them. The morphology and crystal structure of anodized $TiO_2$ nanotubes are investigated by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. As-formed $TiO_2$ nanotubes have straight tubular layers with an amorphous structure. As the annealing temperature increases, the anodized $TiO_2$ nanotubes are converted to the anatase and rutile phases with some cracks on the tube surface and irregular morphology. Electrochemical results reveal that amorphous $TiO_2$ nanotubes annealed at $150^{\circ}C$ have the largest oxidation/reduction current, which leads to the best electrochromic performance during the coloring/bleaching process. Viologen-anchored $TiO_2$ nanotubes show superior electrochromic properties compared to pristine $TiO_2$ nanotubes, which indicates that the incorporation of a viologen can be an effective way to enhance the electrochromic properties of $TiO_2$ nanotubes.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.28 no.7
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• pp.411-416
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• 2018

Tungsten oxide($WO_3$) films with uniform surface morphology are fabricated using a spin-coating method for applications of electrochromic(EC) devices. To improve the EC performances of the $WO_3$ films, we control the heating rate of the annealing process to 10, 5, and $1^{\circ}C/min$. Compared to the other samples, the $WO_3$ films fabricated at a heating rate of $5^{\circ}C/min$ shows superior EC performances for transmittance modulation(49.5 %), response speeds(8.3 s in a colored state and 11.2 s in a bleached state), and coloration efficiency($37.3cm^2/C$). This performance improvement is mainly related to formation of a uniform surface morphology with increased particle size without any cracks by an optimized annealing heating rate, which improves the electrical conductivity and electrochemical activity of the $WO_3$ films. Thus, the $WO_3$ films with a uniform surface morphology prepared by the optimized annealing heating rate can be used as a potential candidate for performance improvement of the EC devices.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.87-91
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• 2019

We report on stretchable electrochromic films of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) fabricated on silver nanowire (AgNW) electrodes. AgNWs electrodes are prepared on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrates using a spray coater for stretchable electrochromic applications. On top of the AgNW electrode, poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) is introduced to ensure a stable resistance over the electrode under broad strain range by effectively suppressing the protrusion of AgNWs from PDMS. This bilayer electrode exhibits a high performance as a stretchable substrate in terms of sheet resistance increment by a factor of 1.6, tensile strain change to 40 %, and stretching cycles to 100 cycles. Furthermore, P3HT film spin-coated on the bilayer electrode shows a stable electrochromic coloration within an applied voltage, with a color contrast of 28.6 %, response time of 4-5 sec, and a coloration efficiency of $91.0cm^2/C$. These findings indicate that AgNWs/PEDOT:PSS bilayer on PDMS substrate electrode is highly suitable for transparent and stretchable electrochromic devices.