3D graphene from CO2 and K as an excellent counter electrode for dye‐sensitized solar cells

3D graphene, which was synthesized directly from CO₂ via its exothermic reaction with liquid K, exhibited excellent performance as a counter electrode for a dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSSC). The DSSC has achieved a high power conversion efficiency of 8.25%, which is 10 times larger than that (0.74%) of a DSSC with a counter electrode of the regular graphene synthesized via chemical exfoliation of graphite. The efficiency is even higher than that (7.73%) of a dye‐sensitized solar cell with an expensive standard Pt counter electrode. This work provides a novel approach to utilize a greenhouse gas for DSSCs.     

Assessment of Al–Cu–Fe compound for enhanced solar absorption

This work evaluates the suitability of the Al₆₄Cu₂₅Fe₁₁ compound to enhance spectral solar absorption when replacing the mesoporous layer material of dye‐sensitized solar cells. The compound is produced by high‐energy ball milling, a mechanical alloying technique that ensures extensive inter‐diffusion of the elemental components, while heat treatment that ensues promotes the appearance and growth of an icosahedral phase that possesses attractive microstructural and optical properties. These properties, along with electrical ones of Al–Cu–Fe compound, are compared with those of titania, a prominent mesoporous material in solar cell construction in an attempt to replace the scarce and expensive titania. A full array of microstructural, thermal, electrical, and optical analysis of the mechanically alloyed compound is presented to investigate and support this goal. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A review on PEDOT‐based counter electrodes for dye‐sensitized solar cells

The dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSSC) is a promising alternative for the Si solar cell due to its low‐cost and easy fabrication. As a novel conductive polymer, poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) has attracted much attention for DSSCs. In this review article, the progress of PEDOT‐based counter electrodes for DSSCs is presented. First, the properties and structure of PEDOT are briefly described, and its feasibility as a DSSC counter electrode is demonstrated. Then, the effect of various treatments on the electrical conductivity and catalytic activity of PEDOT as well as its stability is examined. Furthermore, efficient and low‐cost composite counter electrodes consisting of PEDOT and other materials are deeply discussed. Finally, an outlook for PEDOT counter electrodes is provided. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of graphene counter electrode and CdSe quantum dots in TiO2 and ZnO on dye‐sensitized solar cell performance

Fabrication and performance study of dye‐sensitized solar cells using different counter electrodes and photoanodes is reported. Spin coated, E‐beam coated platinum, and graphene electrodes were used as counter electrodes. Different combinations of TiO₂ nanoparticle and ZnO nanorods (NRs) with CdSe quantum dots were prepared and used as photoanodes. The photoanodes comprising of both ZnO NRs and TiO₂ nanoparticles have shown improved performances in short‐circuit current density and open‐circuit voltage comparing the devices fabricated using only ZnO NR or TiO₂ nanoparticles. The inclusion of CdSe quantum dots has been found to increase the performance of dye‐sensitized solar cell for all the photoanodes. In case of counter electrodes, the cells fabricated with graphene showed improved performance. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The synthesis and characterization of carbon dots and their application in dye sensitized solar cell

Carbon dots (CDOTs) are increasingly becoming popular in the areas ranging from sensing and bioimaging to electronics. The interesting optical properties of CDOTs make it vital to explore its potential in the development of sustainable energy. In this work, one-step hydrothermally synthesized CDOTs were used as sensitizing agent in the fabrication of dye sensitized solar cell. The fabrication of the CDOT-based dye sensitized solar cell and its performance characteristics are explored in depth. The fabricated dye sensitized solar cell performance in terms of efficiency, voltage, and current was evaluated using a standard illumination of air-mass 1.5 global (AM 1.5 G) having an irradiance of 100 mW/cm [2]. The photon-to-current conversion efficiency (η) of only the carbon dot sensitized solar cell was 0.10% whereas the efficiency of the solar cell fabricated with a sensitizing dye made up of CDOT and N719 was 0.19%. As compared with the performance DSSCs fabricated with only 719 dye, it was observed that when CDOT was used in combination with N719 as sensitizing dye, the open circuit voltage increases yet the overall efficiency of the resulting solar cells decreases. It is clear from the result that CDOT could be used as a sensitizing dye in DSSCs. However, it is not very useful when used in combination with other sensitizing dyes due to energy transfer.     

Deprotonated curcumin as a simple and quick available natural dye for dye sensitized solar cells

In the present study, deprotonation of curcumin dye using potassium carbonate was performed successfully, which produced fairly stable deprotonated dye with a large bathochromic shift in the visible light absorption spectrum. The light-harvesting efficiency of this deprotonated dye was investigated in TiO₂-based dye sensitized solar cells, which exhibited an energy conversion efficiency of 0.91%, and this value is 8.3 times higher than that of the dye sensitized solar cells with curcumin photosensitizer without deprotonation.     

Synthesis of TiO2 nanoparticles at low hydrothermal temperature and its performance for DSSC sensitized using natural dye extracted from Melastoma malabathricum L. seeds

Efficiency of a dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSSC) device depends on its semiconductor layer and the sensitizing dye to absorb the light. This work seeks to obtain the best solvent for the natural dye extraction from Melastoma malabathricum L. seeds. The extracted dye is used as sensitizer on TiO₂ nanoparticles produced via hydrothermal but optimized at relatively low temperature. Infrared characterization of the extracted dyes showed differences in functional groups using different solvents, whereas ultraviolet visible examination of the dyes showed differences in intensity along the spectrum ranges of 600 to 400 nm with maximum absorption around 550 to 500 nm. Thermal analysis revealed that the natural dye should be stable around room temperature. Analysis on the synthesized TiO₂ nanoparticles showed that the average crystallite size reported in the previous work is consistent with crystallite sizes observed in the transmission electron microscope images. Photoactivity examination showed that the DSSC sensitized using natural dye extracted with ethanol containing 20% distilled water on TiO₂ synthesized at 150°C has an efficiency of 5.7%, whereas the one on commercial TiO₂ P25 Degussa has an efficiency of 3.0%. The DSSC device sensitized using commercial dye on TiO₂ synthesized at 150°C has an efficiency of 4.4%, whereas the one on TiO₂ P25 Degussa has an efficiency of 4.0%. This result is promising for further development of the DSSC device using TiO₂ nanoparticles synthesized at low hydrothermal temperature and sensitized with the natural dye.     

Investigation of novel anthracene‐bridged carbazoles as sensitizers and Co‐sensitizers for dye‐sensitized solar cells

Novel anthracene‐bridged carbazole organic dyes (designated ML4 and ML5) were synthesized using the Suzuki coupling reaction. These dyes were designed to be donor‐π‐conjugation‐acceptor sensitizers for dye‐sensitized solar cells, where the carbazole moiety acts as the donor, the anthracene moiety provides the π‐conjugation, and the cyano acrylic acid acts as the acceptor. Solar cells were fabricated with ML4 and ML5 alone with low power conversion efficiencies, but they were also used as co‐sensitizers with N719, improving the efficiency of the dye‐sensitized solar cells produced by ~3% and ~10%, respectively. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Bridging TiO2 nanoparticles using graphene for use in dye‐sensitized solar cells

The use of graphene to bridge TiO₂ particles in the photoanode of dye‐sensitized solar cell for reduced electrical resistance has been investigated. The difficulty in dispersing graphene in TiO₂ paste was overcome by first dispersing graphene oxide (GO) into the TiO₂ paste. The GO was then reduced to graphene after the sintering of TiO₂. This is shown through transmission electron microscopy and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. Cell performance was evaluated using a solar simulator, incident photon to electron conversion efficiency, intensity modulated photocurrent/photovoltage spectroscopy under blue light, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Depending on the amount of graphene in the photoanode, the cell performance was enhanced to different degrees. A maximum increase of 11.4% in the cell efficiency has been obtained. In particular, the inclusion of graphene has reduced the electron diffusion time by as much as 23.4%, i.e. from 4.74 to 3.63 ms and increased the electron lifetime by as much as 42.3%, i.e. from 19.58 to 27.85 ms. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Hydrothermally synthesized TiO2 nanopowders and their use as photoanodes in dye‐sensitized solar cells

TiO₂ nanopowders are synthesized using a hydrothermal process under various conditions. Effects of several hydrothermal conditions are investigated such that the TiO₂ nanopowders having optimized size, surface area, crystallinity, and yield are used for the fabrication of photoanodes. The obtained TiO₂ photoanodes are subjected to oxygen plasma treatments for various times. As‐synthesized and plasma‐treated photoanodes are then assembled into dye‐sensitized solar cells. The plasma‐treated photoanodes exhibit different concentrations of surface C–OH and oxygen vacancies, depending on the plasma treatment times. This leads to dye‐sensitized solar cells having different conversion efficiencies. The use of plasma treatment can enhance the cell conversion efficiency by more than 24%. The effects of the photoanode surface condition on the performance of photoanode are discussed. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Facile synthesis of titanium dioxide‐cadmium sulfide nanocomposite using pulsed laser ablation in liquid and its performance in photovoltaic and photocatalytic applications

Narrow band gap semiconductors like cadmium sulfide (CdS) are being applied as an agent to reduce the band gap of metal oxide semiconductors like titanium dioxide (TiO₂). In order to obtain a TiO₂/CdS nanocomposite with reduced electron‐hole recombination and improved stability, we coupled 10%, 20%, and 40% by weight of CdS with TiO₂ in this work using pulsed laser ablation in liquid technique. Here, 532 nm wavelength generated from neodymium‐doped yttrium aluminum garnet laser was directed into the TiO₂/CdS mixture prepared in a colloid form to produce the TiO₂/CdS nanocomposites. The effect of the CdS concentration on the performance of the obtained nanocomposite in a dye‐sensitized solar cell and photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange in water was studied in detail. However, the nanocomposite with 10% percentage weight of CdS in anatase TiO₂ showed the best performance as compared with pure TiO₂, and the photoconversion efficiency of the dye‐sensitized solar cell was improved from 0.6% to 4.3%, while the percentage of methyl orange degraded was enhanced from 58% to 82% after 36 min irradiation using ultraviolet–visible light. This improvement in photovoltaic and photodegradation properties is due to limited electron hole recombination rate, higher conduction of charge carriers, their longer lifetime during the photocatalytic process, improved ultraviolet–visible light activity, reduced photocorrosion, and improved pore size. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Performance enhancement of dye‐sensitized solar cells via cosensitization of ruthenizer Z907 and organic sensitizer SQ2

Cosensitization is a highly effective technique to enhance the photovoltaic performance of a dye‐sensitized solar cell. The main objective of this work is to improve the performance of dye‐sensitized solar cell using cosensitization approach and investigation of the effect of the organic cosensitizer concentration on the power conversion efficiency of the fabricated solar cell devices. In this work, Z907, a ruthenium dye, has been cosensitized with SQ2, an organic sensitizer, and an overall efficiency of 7.83% has been achieved. The fabricated solar cells were evaluated using UV‐Vis spectroscopy, current‐voltage (I‐V) characteristics, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy analysis. Our results clearly indicate that the concentration of organic cosensitizer strongly affects the photovoltaic performance of fabricated solar cells. Upon optimization, the cell fabricated with 0.3 mM Z907 + 0.2 mM SQ2 dye solution demonstrated J_sc (mA/cm²) = 21.38, V_oc (mV) = 698.37, FF (%) = 52.46, and power conversion efficiency of η (%)  = 7.83 under standard AM1.5G 1 sun illumination (100 mW/cm²). It was observed that the efficiency of cosensitized solar cells is significantly superior than that of individual sensitized solar cells (Z907 [η  = 5.08%] and SQ2 [η  = 1.39%]). This enhancement in efficiency could be attributed to the lower electron‐hole recombination rate, decrease in competitive absorption of I^?/I^?₃, and less dye aggregation because of the synergistic effect in cosensitized solar cells.     

天然染料敏化太阳能电池性能模拟研究

基于电子传输的扩散理论建立了染料敏化太阳能电池（DSSC）的连续性方程,并在扩散方程的基础上,将单一天然染料及混合天然染料的吸收光谱参数引入连续性方程中,对模拟得到的天然染料的伏安特性曲线进行分析与评价,得到了高效率的天然染料及最优天然染料组合。本研究对天然染料敏化太阳能电池的应用与技术发展具有一定的指导意义。     

N‐doped titania powders prepared by different nitrogen sources and their application in quasi‐solid state dye‐sensitized solar cells

Nitrogen‐doped TiO₂ nanocrystalline particles are synthesized by a microwave‐assisted hydrothermal growth method using different amines (Dipropylamine, Diethanolamine and Ammonium hydroxide) as nitrogen sources. Characterization of the nanoparticles was performed with X‐ray diffraction, UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy and X‐ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy. The prepared N‐doped TiO₂ nanoparticles exhibit pure anatase phase with average diameter of 9 nm and reduced optical energy gap compared to undoped TiO₂. Immobilization of N‐doped and pure TiO₂ nanoparticles on SnO₂:F conductive glass substrates was successfully performed by using doctor‐blade technique and paste of the aforementioned nanoparticles. A series of N‐doped TiO₂ photoelectrodes with varying N dopant source and concentrations were fabricated for quasi‐solid state dye‐sensitized solar cells. The N‐doped solar cells achieve an overall conversion efficiency ranging from 4.0 to 5.7% while undoped TiO₂ showed 3.6%. The basic difference to the electrical performance of the cells is focused to the enhancement in the current density of N‐doped TiO₂‐based cells which was from 11% to 58% compared with undoped TiO₂ cells. Current densities were directly proportional with nitrogen doping level in TiO₂ lattice which differs depending on the amine source nature such as basicity differences, hydrogen bonding abilities and steric inherences. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A new method to evaluate the feasibility of a dye in DSSC application

Search for better photo sensitizers has always been a challenge in the field of dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC). This paper suggests a new method to identify a good dye for DSSC through the evaluation of energy levels of dye–TiO₂ complex. The highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy levels of the complex are evaluated using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and spectroscopic technique. These energy levels have been used to predict the performance of the solar cell even without fabricating a cell. The authenticity of this method is also revalidated through the correlation of efficiency of practical cell. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis of carbon nanomaterials for dye‐sensitized solar cells

In this paper, it was demonstrated that Na₂O can react with CO to produce carbon nanofibers at 500 °C and carbon nanosheets at 550 °C. Furthermore, the nanosheets exhibited excellent performance as a counter electrode for a dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSSC), leading to a high power conversion efficiency of 7.57%. The efficiency is larger than that (4.72%) of a DSSC with the carbon nanofiber counter electrode and even comparable with that of an expensive Pt‐based DSSC. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Recent advances in photo‐anode for dye‐sensitized solar cells: a review

Dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSSC) attracts immense interest in the last few decades due to its various attractive features such as low production cost, ease of fabrication and relatively high conversion efficiency, which make it a strong competitor to the conventional silicon‐based solar cell. In DSSC, photo‐anode performs two important functions, viz. governs the collection and transportation of photo‐excited electrons from dye to external circuit as well as acts as a scaffold layer for dye adsorption. The photo‐anode usually consists of wide band gap semiconducting metal oxides such as titanium dioxide (TiO₂) and zinc oxide (ZnO) deposited on the transparent conducting oxide substrates. The morphology and composition of the semiconductor oxides have significant impact on the DSSC photovoltaic performance. Therefore, enormous research efforts have been undertaken to investigate the influences of photo‐anode modifications on DSSC performance. The modifications can be classified into three categories, namely interfacial modification through the introduction of blocking and scattering layer, doping with non‐metallic anions and metallic cations and replacing the conventional mesoporous semiconducting metal oxide films with one‐dimensional or two‐dimensional nanostructures. In the present review, the previously mentioned modifications on photo‐anode are summarized based on the recent findings, with particular emphasis given to published works for the past 5 years. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Reduced graphene oxide–titania nanocomposite‐modified photoanode for efficient dye‐sensitized solar cells

We report the successful application of reduced graphene oxide–titania (rGO–TiO₂) nanocomposite as an efficient photoanode for dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSSC). The DSSC assembled with the rGO–TiO₂‐modified photoanode demonstrated an enhanced solar to electrical energy conversion efficiency of 4.74% compared with the photoanode of DSSC composed with unmodified TiO₂ (2.19%) under full sunlight illumination (100 mW/cm², AM 1.5G) as a result of the better charge collection efficiency of rGO, which reduced the back electron transfer process. Influence of the rGO content on the overall efficiency was also investigated, and the optimal rGO content for TiO₂ was 0.5 mg. Further, the modification of rGO–TiO₂ on the compact layer TiO₂ surface led to an increase in efficiency to 5.83%. The superior charge collection and enhanced solar energy conversion efficiency of the rGO–TiO₂ nanocomposite makes it to be used as a promising alternative to conventional photoanode‐based DSSCs. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Soft‐template synthesis of high surface area mesoporous titanium dioxide for dye‐sensitized solar cells

In the present work, 10 to 14 nm titania nanoparticles with high‐packing density are synthesized by the soft‐template method using a range of cationic surfactants including cetyl trimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), and dodecyl trimethylammonium bromide (DTAB). The synthesized nanoparticles are used as a photoanode material in dye solar cells. Density functional theory (DFT) simulations reproduce our experimental results of charge transfer and strong interaction between the TiO₂ and N719. N719‐TiO₂ complex establishes strong electrostatic bonding through H of the dye with the O of TiO₂ surface. Solar cell efficiency of 6.08% with 12.63 mA/cm², 793 mV, and 48.5% for short circuit current density, open circuit voltage, and fill factor, respectively, are obtained under 1 sun illumination for the dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSSC) using a film of mesoporous TiO₂ synthesized from the SDS surfactant. On the other hand, the 21 nm commercial TiO₂ powder (P25) device results in 4.60% efficiency under similar conditions. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopic studies show that the SDS device has lesser charge transport resistance than the other devices because of its higher surface area, packing density, and dye loading capacity. Our results show that employing high packing density‐based TiO₂ nanoparticles represents a commercially viable approach for highly beneficial photoanode development for future DSSC applications.     

A review on PV cells and nanocomposite‐coated PV systems

Solar radiation can be converted into electrical energy and generate electric power that can be utilized in multiple ways. The technological improvements have provided enormous solutions to the mankind for utilizing the solar energy although photovoltaic's (PV) by consuming sunlight. Photovoltaic is popularly known by the process of converting light to electricity. The current estimated growth by producing global power around 368 GW in 2017 and projecting 3000 to 10 000 GW by 2030. Looking at all the available solar cells, it has been observed that the dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSSC) when compared to mono‐Si or poly‐Si has been effective in its performance and also reduces production cost to a great extent. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of DSSC has reached to a better extent and been discussed in the paper. There are other mechanisms through which the efficiency can be improved like applying the antireflection coating. Reflection is a usual phenomenon that happens when light incident from one medium to another varies in refractive index. This reflection is one of the important reasons for the loss of power in the PV Cell. So to improve the PCE, the Mono‐Si or DSSC PV Cells can be applied with a thin film antireflection coating by the nanocomposite film consisting of single‐ or multi‐wall carbon nanotubes with TiO₂ and other efficient nanoparticles. This paper discusses on different kinds of nanocomposite materials, and their functionalities has been clearly given. Remarkable improvements have been recorded in the last 1 year by applying the antireflection coating; the PCE has further been increased enormously when compared to the uncoated solar cell for both DSSC and Mono‐Si PV cells.