A silver nanoparticle-decorated N,S-co-doped TiO2 nanocomposite was successfully prepared and used as an efficient photoanode in high-performance dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) with N719 dye. The DSSCs assembled with the N,S-TiO2@Ag-modified photoanode demonstrated an enhanced solar-to-electrical energy conversion efficiency of 8.22%, which was better than that of a DSSC photoanode composed of unmodified TiO2 (2.57%) under full sunlight illumination (100 mWcm−2, AM 1.5 G). This enhanced efficiency was mainly attributed to the reduced band gap energy, improved interfacial charge transfer, and retarded charge recombination process. The influence of the Ag content on the overall efficiency was also investigated, and the optimum Ag content with N,S-TiO2 was found to be 20 wt%. Because of the enhanced solar energy conversion efficiency of the N,S-TiO2@Ag nanocomposite, it should be considered as a potential photoanode for high-performance DSSCs.

A facile solvent-based synthesis route based on the oxidation-reduction reaction between graphene oxide (GO) and SnCl2•2H2O has been developed to synthesize SnO2/graphene (SnO2/G) nanocomposites. The reduction of GO and the in situ formation of SnO2 nanoparticles were achieved in one step. Characterization by X-ray diffraction (XRD), ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) absorption spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) confirmed the feasibility of using the solvothermally treated reaction system to simultaneously reduce GO and form SnO2 nanoparticles with an average particle size of 10 nm. The electrochemical performance of SnO2/graphene showed an excellent specific capacitance of 363.3 F/g, which was five-fold higher than that of the as-synthesized graphene (68.4 F/g). The contributing factors were the synergistic effects of the excellent conductivity of graphene and the nanosized SnO2 particles.

This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting galley proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. AbstractA simple method based on potentiostatic polymerization was developed for the preparation of ternary manganese oxide-based nanocomposite films. The ternary nanocomposites, which were characterized using x-ray diffraction spectroscopy and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, showed that the manganese oxide within the film consisted of MnO 2 and Mn 2 O 3 . Electrochemical measurements showed that the ternary nanocomposite electrode exhibited high specific capacitance (up to 320.6 F/g), which was attributed to the morphology of a polypyrrole/graphene/manganese-oxide (PPy/GR/MnO x ) ternary nanocomposite. The experimental approach maximized the pseudocapacitive contribution from redox-active manganese oxide (MnO x ) and polypyrrole (PPy), as well as the electrochemical double layer capacitive (EDLC) characteristic from graphene (GR) sheets. Long cyclic measurements indicated that the specific capacitance of the ternary nanocomposite film could retain 93% of its initial value over 1,000 charge/discharge cycles, in the potential range of -0.2 to 0.7 V vs. silver/silver chloride electrode (Ag/AgCl).

Ag@TiO2 plasmonic photoanode modified dye-sensitized solar cells showed enhanced photovoltaic performance due to surface plasmon resonance effect.

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