To overcome the long-term stability problems of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) due to solvent evaporation and leakage, gelling the electrolyte with polymers is an appropriate option. Especially for future applications of textile-based DSSCs, which require cost-effective and environmentally friendly materials, such an improvement of the electrolyte is necessary. Therefore, the temporal progressions of efficiencies and fill factors of non-toxic glass-based DSSCs resulting from different gel electrolytes with poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) are investigated over 52 days comparatively. Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) proved to be a suitable non-toxic solvent for the proposed gel electrolyte without ionic liquids. A PEO concentration of 17.4 wt% resulted in an optimal compromise with a relatively high efficiency over the entire period. Lower concentrations resulted in higher efficiencies during the first days but in a poorer long-term stability, whereas a higher PEO concentration resulted in an overall lower efficiency. Solvent remaining in the gel electrolyte during application was found advantageous compared to previous solvent evaporation. In contrast to a commercial liquid electrolyte, the long-term stability regarding the efficiency was improved successfully with a similar fill factor and thus equal quality.
Alongside efficiency, long-term stability of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) is a key factor regarding their commercialization. One suitable and cost-effective method to increase the long-term stability is to prevent leakage and evaporation of the electrolyte by gelling it with polymers such as poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and gaining a gel polymer electrolyte (GPE). In this study, a GPE based on PEO and glycerol is investigated for the first time as electrolyte for environmentally friendly DSSCs with natural dyes. To evaluate the novel glycerol/PEO GPE, the ionic conductivity and resulting efficiency progressions of DSSCs were measured for 75 days. Different molecular weights (MWs) of PEO and blending with poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) had negligible impact on efficiencies. 17 wt% PEO was found to be more suitable than lower concentrations and resulted in a relatively high efficiency over 75 days. A glycerol electrolyte without PEO had higher ionic conductivity and achieved higher efficiencies as well but leaked from the unsealed DSSCs. In addition, the reproducibility was examined especially, which appeared to be reduced by considerable differences between identical DSSCs and between measurements of the same DSSC at different times. This emphasizes the relevance of studying multiple DSSC per sample to ensure reliable results.
In times of climate change and dwindling fossil resources, the need for sustainable renewable energy technologies gains importance, increasingly fast. However, the state of the art technologies are energy intensive in their production, like monocrystalline photovoltaic, or even consist of not recyclable composite material, in the case of wind turbine blades. Despite a lack in efficiency and stability, dye sensitized solar cells (DSSC) have a high potential to supplement the state of the art green energy technology in future. With low production costs and no necessity for toxic compounds DSSCs are a potential product, which could circulate in the loops of a circular economy. Therefore, with this paper, we provide the status of research on DSSC recycling and an outlook on how recycling streams could be realized in the future for glass-based DSSCs without toxic components. The overview includes work on using recycled material to build DSSCs and extending the life of a DSSC, e.g., through rehydration. We also illustrate the state of sustainability research for DSSCs using the VOSviewer tool. To date, the term sustainability appears in 35 of 24,441 publications on DSSCs. In view of the global challenges, sustainability should be researched more seriously because it is as important as the efficiency and stability of DSSCs.
Dye-sensitized solar cells have been under development for the last three decades but are yet to see the market. This has been attributed to stability issues of the electrolyte in the cell. Electrolytes can be liquid, quasi-solid, or solid. Liquid electrolytes were the first to be developed and, therefore, have been subject to radical revisions in both composition and applicability. They have shown the best power conversion efficiencies but have poor thermal stability. Although quasi-solid and solid-state electrolytes were developed to overcome these stability issues, they too have their limits. The aim of this paper is to explore the development of liquid electrolytes, outlining the current state of the technology and considering their potential in the photovoltaic market.
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