The waste of wine becomes material for photovoltaic cells

The project “Cheers” in collaboration with Ca’ Foscari University of Venice goes on.

Serena Wines 1881, attentive to environmental sustainability, continues its partnership with the Venetian university, which thanks to the recovery of wine waste has experimented with a completely new technology. Serena Wines 1881 now owns the patent, and the time has come to build a prototype on an industrial scale. The protagonists of the project continued to work also during the Covid-19 period. Dr. Stefano Meneghetti, Quality Manager at the winery, as well as being one of the creators, is also an active part of the project.

The objective of “Cheers” is the identification of innovative solutions through the recovery and utilization of wine waste, technically called lees. The research uses the residue deposited at the bottom of wine tanks – rich in natural dye – and transforms it into a valued raw material to obtain components dedicated to photovoltaic solar cells with organic dye, the so-called Gräetzel cells. The dye obtained is used for the production of prototypes and simulates the process of chlorophyll photosynthesis. The colored pigments capture the light of the sun and transmit it to the circuit in the form of electrons, which will subsequently be turned into renewable and sustainable electricity. A real innovation for the construction sector, but also for the enology one, since it is an absolutely new project.

In the meantime, new ideas are coming.