Effect of reduced graphene oxide addition on the performance of zinc oxide nanorod based dye-sensitized solar cell

Abstract

As one of third generation photovoltaic device, dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) plays important part in search for new and renewable energy resources. As part of this device, dye has a very critical function due to its responsibility in absorbing the photon energy from the sunlight. The more light can be absorbed, the higher the value of photon to electricity conversion efficiency can be obtained. For increasing the absorption capacity of the dye, this work investigated the effect of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) addition into the dye solution with rGO to dye weight % ratio of 1:100; 3:100; and 5:100 respectively. On the basis of investigation, it was found that the ratio of 3:100 produced a higher power conversion efficiency (PCE) of about 0,02% as compared to the reference cells which displayed a value of 0,005%. It confirms that introducing rGO into the dye can enhance the DSSC performance, though several fabrication handling procedures still need to be improved as well.