Performance of dye-sensitized solar cells employing polymer gel as an electrolyte and the influence of nano-porous materials as fillers

Kesavan, Mookkandi Palsamy; Arulraj, A.; Rajendran, Kumar; Anbarasu, Prema; Ganesh, Panchapakesan; Jeyakumar, D.; Suri, Nikhil

doi:10.1088/2053-1591/aade2a

Cited by 9 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Thus, even though the aerogel compression does increase its density, the effects are too small to cause significant impedance to diffusion. This is unique compared to most gel polymer electrolytes reported in the literature where the ionic conductivity and interfacial properties are affected, and thus inorganic nanoparticles are sometimes added to the polymer matrix to restore DSSC efficiency. ,, As compared to the earlier work of Miettunen et al, the aerogel fabrication method here allows easier tuning of the aerogel density, porosity, degree of cross-linking (and thus the viscosity of the initial gel and its processability), and thickness control. Furthermore, the freezing conditions used here are milder (−30 °C freezing in the freezer vs flash-freezing in liquid nitrogen), making the current method more appealing to larger scale fabrication and applicable to more delicate conductive substrates.…”

Section: Results and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Cellulose Nanocrystal Aerogels as Electrolyte Scaffolds for Glass and Plastic Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Miettunen²,

Cranston

et al. 2019

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

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The fabrication, thickness, and structure of aerogel films composed of covalently cross-linked cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) and poly(oligoethylene glycol methacrylate) (POEGMA) were optimized for use as electrolyte absorbers in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The aerogel films were cast directly on transparent conducting counter electrode substrates (glass and flexible poly(ethylene terephthalate) plastic) and then used to absorb drop-cast liquid electrolyte, thus providing an alternative method of filling electrolyte in DSSCs. This approach eliminates the use of electrolyte-filling holes, which are a typical pathway of electrolyte leakage, and furthermore enables a homogeneous distribution of electrolyte components within the photoelectrode. Unlike typical in situ electrolyte gelation approaches, the phase inversion method used here results in a highly porous (>99%) electrolyte scaffold with excellent ionic conductivity and interfacial properties. DSSCs prepared with CNC–POEGMA aerogels reached similar power conversion efficiencies as compared to liquid electrolyte devices, indicating that the aerogel does not interfere with the operation of the device. These aerogels retain their structural integrity upon bending, which is critical for their application in flexible devices. Furthermore, the aerogels demonstrate impressive chemical and mechanical stability in typical electrolyte solvents because of their stable covalent cross-linking. Overall, this work demonstrates that the DSSC fabrication process can be simplified and made more easily upscalable by taking advantage of CNCs, being an abundant and sustainable bio-based material.

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Section: Results and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Cellulose Nanocrystal Aerogels as Electrolyte Scaffolds for Glass and Plastic Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Miettunen²,

Cranston

et al. 2019

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

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“…The next critical component in such DSSCs is the photoanode with porous structured materials [2][3][4] over which dye molecules get adsorbed onto its surface. To achieve high performance, the photoanode needs to possess large surface area and good electron transport capability [3]. It has been reported [5] by that the performance of DSSC could be improved by doping or sensitizing the material which in turn enhance the absorption of solar light.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dssc Performance of Zinc - Tin - Vanadium Oxide Nanocomposite Using Beetroot (Beta Vulgaris) as Dye Sensitizer

Uthayarani¹,

Chitra²,

Vasanthapriya³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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In this present work, zinc - tin - vanadium oxide (ZTVO) nanocomposite was prepared using hydrothermal route and was subjected to calcination at 600 0 C. The sample was systematically characterized by Powder X-ray Diffractometer (XRD), Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR), Field Emission Scanning electron Microscope (FE-SEM), Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) and Ultraviolet- Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopic techniques. From the investigations, it is observed that this composite possess the combination of both individual and binary phases. The elongated nanostructures obtained due to the binary phases and spherical shaped nanostructures obtained due to the individual phase were observed from the FE-SEM image. The formation of the nanocomposite has further been confirmed from TEM and HRTEM images. ZTVO nanocomposite possess large surface area of 167.3 m2/g and pore size value around 11 nm. Also, the band gap of the material has been found to be 1.97 eV. Dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) has been fabricated using this ZTVO nanocomposite as the photoanode and betalain dye extracted from beetroot (Beta vulgaris) as the natural dye. This simple protocol was formulated at a low cost for the first time for DSSC fabrication and it has attained the efficiency of 3.41%. This better efficiency of ZTVO might be due to larger surface area, presence of pores in addition to smaller band gap.

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Nanoelectronics Devices (Field-Effect Transistors, Electrochromic Devices, Light-Emitting Diodes, Dielectrics, Neurotransmitters)

Sephra

Baraneedharan

Arulraj

2021

Advances in Hybrid Conducting Polymer Technology

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Performance of dye-sensitized solar cells employing polymer gel as an electrolyte and the influence of nano-porous materials as fillers

Cited by 9 publications

References 42 publications

Cellulose Nanocrystal Aerogels as Electrolyte Scaffolds for Glass and Plastic Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Cellulose Nanocrystal Aerogels as Electrolyte Scaffolds for Glass and Plastic Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Dssc Performance of Zinc - Tin - Vanadium Oxide Nanocomposite Using Beetroot (Beta Vulgaris) as Dye Sensitizer

Nanoelectronics Devices (Field-Effect Transistors, Electrochromic Devices, Light-Emitting Diodes, Dielectrics, Neurotransmitters)

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