Fabrication of highly efficient and cost-effective dye-sensitized solar cells using ZnO/MWCNT nanocomposite as photoanode

Vijayanath, S.; Janaki, K.; Ramalingam, G.; Ragupathi, C.; Rangasamy, Baskaran; Alam, Mohammed Mujahid

doi:10.1007/s10008-022-05312-w

Cited by 6 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…25,26 Figure 4 displays a graph of (αhν) 2 vis hν (photon energy) for pure ZnO NPs and ZnO/MWCNT nanocomposite with varying contents. Straight lines that were fitted have been extended on the hν axis to determine the optical band gap, 10,17 This reduction in band gap energy indicates a significant transition of electrons through the bandgap energy, facilitated by migration and excitation from the VB to the CB of MWCNTs.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The mixture was sonicated for 2 h to ensure the homogeneity of the resulting ZnO/MWCNT nanocomposites, as confirmed by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) images presented in our recent study on the same nanocomposites. 17 This process yielded ZnO/MWCNT nanocomposites with different weight ratios (5,10,15,20,25,30,40, and 50 wt%). A special quartz cuvette with an optical length of 1.0 mm was used to characterize all the samples.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The observed improvements have demonstrated the potential of MWCNT-incorporated ZnO NPs in various applications, including sensors, light emitting diodes, solar cells, and photocatalysis. [10][11][12][13] Several studies have explored the modification of optoelectronic properties of ZnO NPs through the incorporation of MWCNTs. For instance, Bhat et al 14 found that the addition of MWCNTs to ZnO films improved their electrical and optical characteristics, such as decreasing energy band gap and increasing conductivity.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Tailoring Optoelectronic Properties of ZnO Nanoparticles via Incorporation of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Contents on of ZnO/MWCNT Nanocomposites

Al-Asbahi

2023

ECS J. Solid State Sci. Technol.

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The present study demonstrates the tailoring of optoelectronic properties of ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) by adding multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) at different weight ratios. ZnO/MWCNT nanocomposites were successfully prepared using the solution blending method, and the optical spectra of all samples were determined using a UV–vis spectrometer. An increase in the optical absorption coefficient (α) and extinction coefficient (k) was observed with an increase in MWCNT content, resulting in the significant ability to attenuate incident light in ZnO/MWCNT nanocomposites compared to pure ZnO NPs. The optical band gap of pure ZnO NPs decreased from 3.26 eV to 2.58 eV in the ZnO/50 wt% MWCNT nanocomposite. The refractive index values ranged from 1.66 to 1.61 as the wavelength varied between 400 nm and 700 nm. Furthermore, the incorporation of MWCNTs in the ZnO/MWCNT nanocomposite had an impact on various dispersion parameters related to the refractive index. With increasing MWCNT content, the dielectric constant (ε 0) decreased from 2.40 to 1.96, while the mean oscillator wavelength (λ 0) increased from 157.7 nm to 164.2 nm and the oscillator strength (S0) decreased from 5.93 × 10−5 nm−2 to 3.70 × 10−6 nm−2. The localized density of state (N/m*) increased from 7.45 × 1057 to 20.8 × 1057 (m3 Kg) −1, and the long wavelength refractive index (ε ∞) rose from 3.683 to 4.745. Moreover, the plasma frequency (ω p) of the electron exhibited an increase from 2.15 × 1031 to 6.01 × 1031 Hz. These findings highlight the potential of tailoring the optoelectronic properties of ZnO NPs through the incorporation of MWCNTs, paving the way for the development of novel materials with improved optoelectronic characteristics for a wide range of applications.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Tailoring Optoelectronic Properties of ZnO Nanoparticles via Incorporation of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Contents on of ZnO/MWCNT Nanocomposites

Al-Asbahi

2023

ECS J. Solid State Sci. Technol.

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“…The ideal photoanode has a large surface area, high dye absorption, fast electron transfer rate, and suppressed electron recombination. TiO 2 [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ], SnO 2 [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ], and ZnO [ 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ] are used as photoanodes. In general, TiO 2 is used as a photoanode because it has an appropriate energy band gap, a large specific surface area, stable dye adsorption, and acts as a scattering layer leading to enhanced light harvesting.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Alternatively, ZnO has an electron band gap similar to that of TiO 2 but has high electron mobility [ 28 , 29 ]. There are many ZnO-based DSSCs with various morphologies, such as ZnO nanorods [ 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ], nanoflowers [ 18 , 19 , 20 ], nanotubes [ 21 , 22 , 23 ], and ZnO core-shell structures [ 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ]. However, ZnO-based DSSCs exhibit relatively low efficiencies compared to TiO 2 -based DSSCs because a complex that forms between ZnO and carboxylic acid in the dye decreases efficiency.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Amphiphilic Graft Copolymers as Templates for the Generation of Binary Metal Oxide Mesoporous Interfacial Layers for Solid-State Photovoltaic Cells

Lim,

Jeong,

Moon

et al. 2024

Nanomaterials

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The binary metal oxide mesoporous interfacial layers (bi-MO meso IF layer) templated by a graft copolymer are synthesized between a fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate and nanocrystalline TiO2 (nc-TiO2). Amphiphilic graft copolymers, Poly(epichlorohydrin)-graft-poly(styrene), PECH-g-PS, were used as a structure-directing agent, and the fabricated bi-MO meso IF layer exhibits good interconnectivity and high porosity. Even if the amount of ZnO in bi-MO meso IF layer increased, it was confirmed that the morphology and porosity of the bi-MO meso IF layer were well-maintained. In addtion, the bi-MO meso IF layer coated onto FTO substrates shows higher transmittance compared with a pristine FTO substrate and dense-TiO2/FTO, due to the reduced surface roughness of FTO. The overall conversion efficiency (η) of solid-state photovoltaic cells, dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) fabricated with nc-TiO2 layer/bi-MO meso IF layer TZ1 used as a photoanode, reaches 5.0% at 100 mW cm−2, which is higher than that of DSSCs with an nc-TiO2 layer/dense-TiO2 layer (4.2%), resulting from enhanced light harvesting, good interconnectivity, and reduced interfacial resistance. The cell efficiency of the device did not change after 15 days, indicating that the bi-MO meso IF layer with solid-state electrolyte has improved electrode/electrolyte interface and electrochemical stability. Additionally, commercial scattering layer/nc-TiO2 layer/bi-MO meso IF layer TZ1 photoanode-fabricated solid-state photovoltaic cells (DSSCs) achieved an overall conversion efficiency (η) of 6.4% at 100 mW cm−2.

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Synthesis and characterization of ZnO nanoparticles and their application in dye-sensitized solar cells

Kadam,

Jagtap,

Alshahrani

et al. 2023

J Mater Sci: Mater Electron

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Fabrication of highly efficient and cost-effective dye-sensitized solar cells using ZnO/MWCNT nanocomposite as photoanode

Cited by 6 publications

References 42 publications

Tailoring Optoelectronic Properties of ZnO Nanoparticles via Incorporation of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Contents on of ZnO/MWCNT Nanocomposites

Tailoring Optoelectronic Properties of ZnO Nanoparticles via Incorporation of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Contents on of ZnO/MWCNT Nanocomposites

Amphiphilic Graft Copolymers as Templates for the Generation of Binary Metal Oxide Mesoporous Interfacial Layers for Solid-State Photovoltaic Cells

Synthesis and characterization of ZnO nanoparticles and their application in dye-sensitized solar cells

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