NiSe2 as an efficient electrocatalyst for a Pt-free counter electrode of dye-sensitized solar cells

Gong, Feng; Xu, Xin; Li, Zhuoqun; Zhou, Gang; Wang, Zhongsheng

doi:10.1039/c2cc38621f

Cited by 204 publications

(120 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…The Epp value is negatively correlated with the standard electrochemical rate constant of a redox reaction, which is an important parameter for comparing catalytic activities of different CEs. 23 The Epp values for CoMoS 4 -C (70 mV) and NiMoS 4 -C (76 mV) are much smaller than that for Pt CE (115 mV) (more information is provided in Table S3, ESI †). This is immediately responsible for the lower overpotential losses in the CoMoS 4 -C and NiMoS 4 -C CEs than in the Pt CE.…”

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confidence: 99%

Low-cost and high-performance CoMoS4 and NiMoS4 counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

et al. 2013

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Porous chalcogels CoMoS 4 and NiMoS 4 made by a facile solution reaction displayed good electrocatalytic activity in the redox reaction of the I À /I 3 À shuttle. Dye-sensitized solar cells with these ternary compounds as counter electrodes (CEs) showed photovoltaic performance similar to the devices made with noble metal platinum CE (7.46%).Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have attracted significant attention as low-cost alternatives to traditional photovoltaic devices. 1,2 In DSSCs, counter electrodes (CEs) with both excellent electrocatalytic activity and high electrical conductivity are indispensable to obtain a low overvoltage and to accelerate the regeneration of I À from I 3 À . Due to the fact that noble metal Pt, the most widely used material for CEs at present, is very expensive, studies have recently been made extensively on low-cost Pt-like alternatives, including carbonbased materials, 3 conducting polymers, 4 and metals in the form of oxides, 5 sulfides, 6-10 selenides, 11 nitrides, 12 and carbides, 13 and great promise has been demonstrated in this field. Extension of the CE materials to ternary compounds may greatly expand this research platform. Catalysts based on molybdenum or tungsten sulfides have been widely used for hydrodesulfurization and hydrogen evolution reaction by electrocatalysis, and introduction of Co or Ni promoters into these matrices results in significant enhancement in the catalytic activities. 14-16 Kanatzidis et al. 17 have most recently reported the synthesis of porous CoMoS 4 and NiMoS 4 via facile solution reactions. In this work, we have applied these ternary materials with and without graphite additives as the counter electrodes in DSSCs. The resulting photovoltaic devices showed power conversion efficiency up to 7.31%, comparable to the DSSCs made with an expensive platinum-based counter electrode (7.46%).Ammonium tetrathiomolybdate (NH 4 ) 2 MoS 4 was obtained by the reaction of (NH 4 ) 6 Mo 7 O 24 Á4H 2 O and (NH 4 ) 2 S aqueous solution at ambient temperature. CoMoS 4 and NiMoS 4 were synthesized as previously described. 17 Briefly, Co(NO 3 ) 2 Á6H 2 O, Ni(NO 3 ) 2 Á6H 2 O and (NH 4 ) 2 MoS 4 were dissolved in formamide separately, and then Co or Ni precursor solution was added into the tetrathiomolybdate solution. In these reactions, cationic species of VIII group metals interacted with thiomolybdate anions, leading to precipitation of solids. As the polymerization proceeded, the viscosity of the solution increased, which eventually solidified to a monolithic black gel. It took 7-14 days for the viscous solution to transform into a rigid gel. The products were then annealed at 300 1C in a nitrogen atmosphere and characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), scanning and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM).Both Ni-and Co-based chalcogels were found to be amorphous, as indicated by the predominant broad features in the XRD patterns (Fig. S1, ESI †). A similar resu...

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Low-cost and high-performance CoMoS4 and NiMoS4 counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

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“…This work demonstrates that SPS is a powerful densification method in obtaining high quality polycrystalline materials. The high crystallinity and electrical conductivity for polycrystalline NiSe 2 may allow for potential applications in fields which require high electrical conductivity, such as for junction materials for thermoelectric applications [26], in solar cells [7], and for Li ion cells [8].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to the Ni-Se phase diagram [5] three stable phases exist at room temperature, NiSe 2 , Ni 1Àx Se (x ¼ 0-0.15), and Ni 3 Se 2 , with physical properties that are dependent on composition and morphology [6]. Nickel selenide compounds have potential application in photovoltaics, energy storage, and electrocatalysis [7][8][9][10]. NiSe 2 forms in the pyrite (Pa3) structure and has been used as a conducting layer in solar cells and energy storage materials (NiSe 2 /Li cells, e.g.)…”

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Synthesis and low-temperature transport properties of polycrystalline NiSe₂

Wei

Nolas

2013

Phys. Status Solidi A

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Polycrystalline NiSe 2 was synthesized via a direct solution reaction method, followed by densification by spark plasma sintering. Structural and low-temperature transport properties measurements were employed for characterization. The low temperature thermal conductivity is reported for the first time and is dominated by heat conduction by charge carriers. The polycrystalline NiSe 2 has a low electrical resistivity, lower than that reported for single crystal NiSe 2 , suggesting a very high crystallinity for our polycrystalline specimen. These results are discussed in light of the potential applications for this material.

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“…In order to reduce the overall production cost, numerous attempts have been made to explore competent substitutes for Pt. The substitutes reported so far include carbonaceous materials [3], conducting polymers [4][5][6] and inorganic metal compounds such as oxide [7,8], sulfide, nitride [9][10][11], carbide [12][13][14] and selenide [15,16].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Petal-like cobalt selenide nanosheets used as counter electrode in high efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

Dong

Zheng

et al. 2015

J Mater Sci: Mater Electron

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A petal-like cobalt selenide nanosheets (Co 0.85 Se) is prepared by hydrothermal method and used as an efficient Pt-free counter electrode (CE) for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Field emission scanning electron microscopy observes that the petal-like Co 0.85 Se possess porous and large specific surface area, which benefits the enhancement of electrocatalytic activity. Cyclic voltammogram measurement indicates that Co 0.85 Se electrode has larger current density than Pt electrode. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy shows that the Co 0.85 Se electrode with optimal condition has low charge-transfer resistance of 0.79 X cm 2 . Under simulated solar light irradiation with intensity of 100 mW cm -2 (AM 1.5), the DSSC based on the Co 0.85 Se CE achieves a power conversion efficiency of 8.00 %, which is slightly higher than the solar cell based on the Pt CE (7.83 %).

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NiSe2 as an efficient electrocatalyst for a Pt-free counter electrode of dye-sensitized solar cells

Cited by 204 publications

References 26 publications

Low-cost and high-performance CoMoS4 and NiMoS4 counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Low-cost and high-performance CoMoS4 and NiMoS4 counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Synthesis and low-temperature transport properties of polycrystalline NiSe₂

Petal-like cobalt selenide nanosheets used as counter electrode in high efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

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NiSe2 as an efficient electrocatalyst for a Pt-free counter electrode of dye-sensitized solar cells

Cited by 204 publications

References 26 publications

Low-cost and high-performance CoMoS4 and NiMoS4 counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Low-cost and high-performance CoMoS4 and NiMoS4 counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Synthesis and low-temperature transport properties of polycrystalline NiSe2

Petal-like cobalt selenide nanosheets used as counter electrode in high efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

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Synthesis and low-temperature transport properties of polycrystalline NiSe₂