Highly interconnected porous TiO2-Ni-MOF composite aerogel photoanodes for high power conversion efficiency in quasi-solid dye-sensitized solar cells

Abstract

Three-dimensional mesoporous TiO2-Ni-MOF composite aerogels were synthesized via sol–gel route and used as photoanode materials for quasi-solid dye-sensitized solar cell (QSDSC) applications. The assessment of their photovoltaic performance revealed an enhancement compared to pure aerogel-based QSDSCs; the maximum photo-conversion efficiency of the fabricated photoanode was 8.846% for 0.5% composite aerogel, which is ~30% higher than that of pure aerogel-based ones (6.805%). The achievement of other key factors required for efficiency enhancement such as increased photocurrent density, reduced charge-transfer resistance, and suppressed electron recombination was confirmed by photocurrent density–applied voltage curves and electrochemical impedance measurements. The surface area of the composite aerogels ranged between 269 and 233 m2 g−1, which make them promising candidates for high-efficiency QSDSCs.