Effect of PEG Molecular Weight on the Polyurethane-Based Quasi-Solid-State Electrolyte for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Abstract

Nanosilica was surface modified with polyaniline and incorporated into polyurethane to form a polymer matrix capable of entrapping a liquid electrolyte and functioning as quasi-solid-state electrolyte in the dye-sensitized solar cells. The effect on the S−PANi distribution, surface morphology, thermal stability, gel content, and structural change after varying the PEG molecular weight of the polyurethane matrix was analyzed. Quasi-solid-state electrolytes were prepared by immersing the polyurethane matrix into a liquid electrolyte and the polymer matrix absorbency, conductivity, and ion diffusion were investigated. The formulated quasi-solid-state electrolytes were applied in dye-sensitized solar cells and their charge recombination, photovoltaic performance, and lifespan were measured. The quasi-solid-state electrolyte with a PEG molecular weight of 2000 gmol−1 (PU−PEG 2000) demonstrated the highest light-to-energy conversion efficiency, namely, 3.41%, with an open-circuit voltage of 720 mV, a short-circuit current of 4.52 mA cm−2, and a fill factor of 0.63.

Preparation of Low-Temperature Solution-Processed High-κ Gate Dielectrics Using Organic–Inorganic TiO2 Hybrid Nanoparticles

“…The dielectric constant of the O-I hybrid coatings exhibited an inverse relationship with the length of the hydrophilic chain of the AUP (longer hydrophilic chain resulted in a smaller dielectric constant), while the leakage current value showed a direct proportionality to the length of the hydrophilic chain of the AUP (longer hydrophilic chain correlated with a higher leakage current value). This is because longer hydrophilic chains might lead to more extended and less densely packed structure of nanoparticles within the coatings, thereby limiting the interaction of polarizable groups in response to the applied electric field [ 30 ]. Figure 8 a illustrates the surface structure of O-I hybrid coatings, characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis.…”

“…The AUP comprises a hydrophilic chain (polyethylene oxide—PEO) and a hydrophobic chain (polypropylene oxide—PPO) on the same backbone, with the hydrophilic chain playing a crucial role in stabilizing the silica nanoparticles. The length of this hydrophilic chain strongly impacts the dielectric properties of the coating film derived from these nanoparticles due to its influence on the size distribution, interfacial interaction, and water absorption characteristics [ 29 , 30 ]. To clarify these effects, we used three types of AUP with varying lengths of the hydrophilic chain while keeping the hydrophobic chain constant to prepare different types of O-I TiO 2 hybrid nanoparticles.…”

Formulation and Characterization of Fe3O4@PEG Nanoparticles Loaded Sorafenib; Molecular Studies and Evaluation of Cytotoxicity in Liver Cancer Cell Lines

“…The XRD peaks ascertained that the peaks in 19.3°, 23.5°, and between 10–35° can be attributed to SFB and PEG, respectively [ 40 , 41 , 42 ]. The peaks of the final sample ( Figure 1 E) showed that the main composition of nanoparticles was Fe 3 O 4, and no prominent other extra peaks in the XRD pattern were present as impurities.…”

A novel poly(acrylonitrile)/poly(ethylene glycol)-based polymer gel electrolyte for high efficiency dye sensitized solar cells

“…In these liquid phases of the polymer network, ions can move freely, which provides a major contribution to the ion conductivity of a PGE. Several polymers were used for the fabrication of dye sensitized solar cells, viz., poly(ethylene glycol) gel polymer electrolytes with heteroleptic cobalt redox shuttle and pyridine, 15 PEG-functionalized ABA triblock copolymers, 16 PEG and PVA polymers for gel electrolytes, 17 poly(ethylene glycol) and polyvinylidene fluoride, 18 poly(ethylene glycol), 19 polyethylene glycol/4,4 0diphenylmethane diisocyanate copolymers, 20 PEG-based ABA triblock copolymers, 21 polyethylene glycol based quasi-solid state electrolytes, 22 ionic liquid integrated polyethylene glycol (PEG)-based quasi-electrolytes, 23 polyaniline integrated poly(hexamethylene diisocyanate tripolymer/polyethylene glycol) gel electrolytes, 24 PAN-based triblock copolymers, 25 poly(acrylonitrile) gel polymer electrolytes for prototype solar panels 26 and poly(acrylonitrile-co-vinyl acetate) 27 PGEs for DSSC applications.…”

“…Hence, it has been extensively utilized as a polymer host to prepare PGEs for DSSCs. 7,19,[32][33][34][35][36] In order to avoid the individual drawbacks of PEG or any other single polymer, blending systems have been developed like the PEG-PAA hybrids 37 and PEG/PMMA blends 38,39 for DSSCs.…”