An Efficient Metal-Free Hydrophilic Carbon as a Counter Electrode for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Mojgan Kouhnavard,Norasikin Ahmad Ludin,Kamaruzzaman Sopian,Norshazlinah Abdul Karim,Mikio Miyake,Babak Vazifehkhah Ghaffari

doi:10.1155/2016/5186762

Abstract

This study presents a new cost-effective metal-free counter electrode (CE) for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). CE was prepared by doctor blading a hydrophilic carbon (HC) particle on a fluorine-doped tin oxide substrate. Thereafter, HC CE was characterized using X-ray diffraction, profilometry, four-point probe testing, and cyclic voltammetry. A 2 µm thick HC CE revealed a comparable catalytic activity to that of the Pt electrode under the same experimental conditions. DSSC based on HC CE was analyzed and showedJscof 6.87 mA/cm2close to that of DSSC with Pt CE (7.0 mA/cm2). More importantly, DSSC based on HC CE yielded a power conversion efficiency (η) of 2.93% under AM 1.5 irradiation (100 mW/cm2), which was comparable to that of DSSC based on standard Pt CE. These findings suggest that HC CE could be a promising CE for low-cost DSSCs.

Highlights

Silicon solar cell currently has the largest market share of 85% with conversion efficiency of approximately 25% [1]
This study investigated a new type of counter electrode (CE) for triiodide reduction in Dyesensitized solar cells (DSSCs)
The results indicated hydrophilic carbon (HC) CE’s high surface roughness and good conductivity and catalytic activity

Summary

Introduction

Silicon solar cell currently has the largest market share of 85% with conversion efficiency of approximately 25% [1]. This solar cell could not compete with conventional energy sources because of the high production cost that is mostly caused by the high purification process of the material. This issue motivated the scientist to find new methods to exploit the cheaper and highly efficient solar energy. Over the last 10 years, the highest efficiency of DSSCs ever reported is approximately 12% [10, 11]

Objectives

Results

Conclusion