The prospect of using ti-containing epoxyurethane composites in solar energy

By means of the sol–gel method, titanium-containing epoxyurethane oligomers (Ti–EUO) with different content of polytitanium oxide (TiO₂)_n are synthesized. Based on them, the anhydride curing epoxy urethane polymers (Ti–EU) are obtained. As determined by means of the light microscopy method, the samples of polymer films are transparent and homogeneous. The introduction of polytitanium oxide into the structure of the epoxy urethane polymer increases hydrophobicity and reduces water absorption, increases the hardness and adhesion. Investigation of the optical characteristics of Ti–EU polymers has shown that the introduction of small additions of polytitanium oxide leads to a significant increase in the light transmittance from 59% for the initial epoxyurethane to 88% for Ti–EU, and to the shift of its spectral dependence to the short-wave region that gives the prospect of their using as protective optically-transparent coatings for silicon solar cells (SE). The study of the electrophysical characteristics of the ‘solar-Si Ti–EU’ structure has shown that the lifetime of nonequilibrium charge carriers increases significantly for coated solar-Si, indicating the prospect and the opportunity of increasing the efficiency of the SE.