Abstract
Dye sensitized solar cells have emerged as an attractive alternative to conventional solar cells due to their easy processing and the abundance and low cost of their materials. However, the counter electrode in these cells employs platinum which significantly impacts their cost. Here, we report biomass-derived, nitrogen-doped carbon aerogel as an effective alternative to conventional platinum-based counter electrodes for dye sensitized solar cells. A stable suspension of biomass-derived, nitrogen-doped carbon aerogel was prepared in DMF by using oleylamine as a binder. The nitrogen-doped carbon aerogel electrode was annealed at different temperatures, and its impact on photovoltaic performance is investigated. I-V measurements confirm that the annealing temperature substantially enhances the photovoltaic parameters of these devices; these enhancements are linked to the removal of the organic binders. Electrochemical impedance spectra of the counter electrodes confirm that removal of oleylamine in nitrogen-doped carbon aerogels reduces the series resistance of the resulting electrodes. The power conversion efficiency of the solar cells from optimized nitrogen-doped carbon aerogel exhibited comparable efficiency to that of a cell fabricated using a platinum-based counter electrode. This study demonstrates the potential of biomass-derived carbon aerogels as a cheap and sustainable replacement of platinum in DSSCs.
Highlights
Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have been investigated as alternatives to current photovoltaic technologies due their low cost, simple manufacturing process, and potential for high efficiency [1,2,3,4].Several strategies have been proposed to further lower the cost of these devices to boost their commercial potential
This work highlights the use of a biomass-derived carbonaceous material as an effective alternative
This work highlights the use of a biomass-derived carbonaceous material as an effective to expensive platinum counter electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells
Summary
Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have been investigated as alternatives to current photovoltaic technologies due their low cost, simple manufacturing process, and potential for high efficiency [1,2,3,4]. In order to address this issue, many cheap and viable alternatives have been investigated in the recent past [11] In this regard, carbonaceous materials have gained much attention due to their high electronic conductivity, low cost, and ability to efficiently reduce triiodide in the redox electrolyte [2]. Nitrogen-doped porous carbons have been used as DSSC counter electrodes; material synthesized by pyrolysis and alkali activation of melamine formaldehyde resin with surface area 1302 m2 g−1 achieved a power conversion efficiency of 6.9% when used as a counter electrode [23]. The above literature demonstrates an excellent potential of both carbon aerogels and nitrogen-doped carbons for counter electrodes in DSSCs. despite being a highly-abundant element, most carbon materials are derived from fossil-fuel sources, contributing to the depletion of this finite resource. DSSC assembled using a counter electrode from N-dC exhibited a light-to-current conversion efficiency close to 90% of that of a platinum electrode in the same configuration
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