Schmidt, FelixAmrein, MeretHedwig, SebastianKober-Czerny, ManuelParacchino, AdrianaHolappa, VilleSuhonen, RiikkaSchäffer, AndreasConstable, Edwin C.Snaith, Henry J.Lenz, Markus2024-04-292024-04-292023-04-050304-38941873-333610.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.130829https://irf.fhnw.ch/handle/11654/45655https://doi.org/10.26041/fhnw-8930Perovskite solar cells represent an emerging and highly promising renewable energy technology. However, the most efficient perovskite solar cells critically depend on the use of lead. This represents a possible environmental concern potentially limiting the technologies’ commercialization. Here, we demonstrate a facile recycling process for PbI2, the most common lead-based precursor in perovskite absorber material. The process uses only hot water to effectively extract lead from synthetic precursor mixes, plastic- and glass-based perovskites (92.6 – 100% efficiency after two extractions). When the hot extractant is cooled, crystalline PbI2 in high purity (> 95.9%) precipitated with a high yield: from glass-based perovskites, the first cycle of extraction / precipitation was sufficient to recover 94.4 ± 5.6% of Pb, whereas a second cycle yielded another 10.0 ± 5.2% Pb, making the recovery quantitative. The solid extraction residue remaining is consequently deprived of metals and may thus be disposed as non-hazardous waste. Therefore, exploiting the highly temperature-dependent solubility of PbI2 in water provides a straightforward, easy to implement way to efficiently extract lead from PSC at the end-of-life and deposit the extraction residues in a cost-effective manner, mitigating the potential risk of lead leaching at the perovskites’ end-of-life.enPerovskite solar cellsRecyclingEnvironmentRecoveryLead pollution600 - Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften01A - Beitrag in wissenschaftlicher Zeitschrift