Solid state dye-sensitized photovoltaic micro-wires (DSPMs) with carbon nanotubes yarns as counter electrode: Synthesis and characterization

Uddin, M. Jasim; Dickens, Tarik; Yan, Jun; Chirayath, R.; Olawale, David; Okoli, Okenwa I.

doi:10.1016/j.solmat.2012.09.003

Cited by 24 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Note that the basal coating and nanoporous TiO 2 pre-coating can provide a base for the following mesoporous and photoactive TiO 2 microfilm. The lower firm thin layer increases the photocurrent by suppressing the charge recombination on the electrode [14]. This was also confirmed with a charge-recombination mathematical modeling study carried out by Ferber et al [29].…”

Section: à2supporting

confidence: 67%

“…The sensitized electrodes were finalized by rinsing in ethanol and drying in air. For CEs, surface treatments of CNY (F ¼ 75 mm) can also be found in our previous work [14]. Figure 1A shows that CNYs were twisted around the pre-formed photo-anodes as mentioned previously.…”

supporting

confidence: 68%

“…The corresponding I-V curves are included in open-circuit voltages. The connection between two cells causes an inevitable resistance for the whole circuit, which is the reason why the sum I sc cannot be exactly doubled [14,25,49,50]. These results confirm that different connections may improve the cell performance in various ways, which can potentially be useful for required engineering applications.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 60%

“…However, photovoltaic wires have opened up an innovative feasibility for cost-effective and scalable solar energy harvesting system with potential textile applications [13]. A few recent reports discussed the fabrication of WPVCs using metal wires as working electrodes (WE) in combination with solid electrolytes that show energy conversion efficiencies of up to 0.2% [14]. Some reports indicate that the efficiency could be increased if the DSSCs are assembled with liquid electrolyte and glass cladding [15][16][17], which yields limited sustainability during transportation and installation.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This subsurface thin film worked as a foundation layer for following the nanostructured and nanoporous TiO 2 layer. The oxidized Ti wires were then immersed into pre-formed TiO 2 colloids via dip-coating method [14], which leads to a nanostructured TiO 2 layer coated on the Ti substrates (WEs). The TiO 2 -coated Ti wires were sintered at 350 8C for 5 min.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Tailoring the efficiency of 3D wire-shaped photovoltaic cells (WPVCs) by functionalization of solid-liquid interfacial properties

Yan

Uddin

Dickens

et al. 2013

Phys. Status Solidi A

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An efficient 3D dye-sensitized photovoltaic microwire has been developed using thermally stable and highly conductive titanium microwires and carbon nanotube yarns (CNYs). Interaligned, ultrastrong, and flexible CNYs with excellent mechanical integrity and electrocatalytic property were successfully used as counter electrodes (CEs). The TiO 2 nanophase coated Ti-microwire acts as the working electrode (WE). The CEs were twisted around the WE to collect and transmit the photogenerated electrons from the outer circuit. The interface in between photoactive TiO 2 film and 3D conductive support has been optimized. The optimized 3D WPVC shows a 0.583% photon to energy conversion efficiency under an irradiation of AM 1.5 (100 mW cm À2 ). Cells with various lengths were observed to attain a fill factor (FF) above 0.8. This work tested WPVCs under different working environments to assess their engineering potential.

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Section: à2supporting

confidence: 67%

supporting

confidence: 68%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 60%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Tailoring the efficiency of 3D wire-shaped photovoltaic cells (WPVCs) by functionalization of solid-liquid interfacial properties

Yan

Uddin

Dickens

et al. 2013

Phys. Status Solidi A

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A Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotube Coated Flexible PVC Counter Electrode for Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells

Hashmi

Halme

et al. 2013

Adv Materials Inter

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Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) technology has attracted considerable attention as one of the next generation solar cells due to their high energy conversion effi ciency, environment-friendliness, simple fabricating procedure, low cost, as well as their potential for the roll-to-roll mass production. [ 1 ] A highly effi cient DSSC is determined by several crucial components, including panchromatic photoabsorption of dyes, effi cient charge separation and electron transport at photoanodes, good electrolytes with fast ion transportation, and effi cient reduction of redox media at the counter electrodes (CEs). Usually, Pt is used as the catalytic material and indium-tin oxide (ITO) glass as the substrate for the counter-electrode. However, the high cost and risk of Pt degradation in the electrolyte [ 2,3 ] have highlighted the need for low-cost, easily scalable, and more corrosion stable materials for CEs. Furthermore, the conductive glass substrates account for approximately 50% of the total DSSC production cost, due to the expensive ITO (or FTO) deposition process under high vacuum conditions. [ 1d , 4 ] Thus numerous research efforts have been focused on reducing production costs while maintaining acceptable cell effi ciency, e.g. the replacement of platinum layer and conductive glass by light-weight and fl exible polymer based materials as substrates. Therefore, the concept of fl exible polymer based solar cells has attracted much interest amongst researchers in the fi eld of DSSCs. [ 5 ] To fabricate a conductive layer on polymer substrate, the most conventional strategy is the deposition of ITO or FTO coating on polymeric sheets, e.g. polyethylene-naphthalate (PEN) and polyethylene-terephthalate (PET). [ 6,7 ] However, the mismatch between the rigid ITO crystal structure and the fl exible polymer sheet easily causes hairline fractures or peeling off from the polymer substrate upon bending, leading to deterioration on the overall electrical performance of the device. Therefore, developing alternative fl exible counter electrodes with high catalytic activity and low electrical resistance at low production costs is still a great challenge on development of fl exible DSSC.In recent years, various carbon-based materials, including activated carbon, [ 8 ] carbon black, [ 9 ] carbon nanotubes [ 10 ] and graphene [ 11 ] have been extensively studied as CE materials for DSSCs. For instance, Chen et al. reported a fl exible pure carbon CE using a graphite sheet as substrate and activated carbon as the catalyst, which shows very low charge transfer resistance (1.2 Ω cm 2 ) and solar-to-electricity conversion effi ciency of 6.46% [ 8c ] . Among these carbonaceous materials, carbon nanotube (CNT)-based coatings (both single-wall and multi-wall) have achieved great interests because of their high electrical conductivity (10 5 to 10 8 S m −1 ), good electrochemical catalytic activity, large surface area as well as excellent corrosion resistance against the electrolyte. [ 2,12 ] In our previous studies, we have demons...

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3D Wire‐Shaped Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells in Solid State Using Carbon Nanotube Yarns with Hybrid Photovoltaic Structure

Yan

Uddin

Dickens

et al. 2014

Adv Materials Inter

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Solid state dye-sensitized photovoltaic micro-wires (DSPMs) with carbon nanotubes yarns as counter electrode: Synthesis and characterization

Cited by 24 publications

References 35 publications

Tailoring the efficiency of 3D wire-shaped photovoltaic cells (WPVCs) by functionalization of solid-liquid interfacial properties

Tailoring the efficiency of 3D wire-shaped photovoltaic cells (WPVCs) by functionalization of solid-liquid interfacial properties

A Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotube Coated Flexible PVC Counter Electrode for Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells

3D Wire‐Shaped Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells in Solid State Using Carbon Nanotube Yarns with Hybrid Photovoltaic Structure

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