Investigation of the Long-Term Stability of Different Polymers and Their Blends with PEO to Produce Gel Polymer Electrolytes for Non-Toxic Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Marius Dotter,Sonia Adabra,Timo Grothe,Jan Lukas Storck,Michelle Surjawidjaja

doi:10.3390/app11135834

Marius Dotter, Sonia Adabra + Show 3 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/app11135834

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Journal: Applied sciences	Publication Date: Jun 23, 2021
Citations: 12	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Hochschule Bielefeld

Abstract

The electrolyte for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) is subject of constant innovation, as the problems of leakage and drying greatly reduce the long-term stability of a device. One possible way to solve these problems is the use of gel polymer electrolytes (GPEs) with a gelling structure, which offer different advantages based on the used polymers. Here, potential GPE systems based on dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as solvent for low-cost, non-toxic and environmentally friendly DSSCs were investigated comparatively. In order to observe a potential improvement in long-term stability, the efficiencies of DSSCs with different GPEs, consisting of polyacrylonitrile (PAN), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and poly (vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) and their blends with poly (ethylene oxide) (PEO), were investigated over a period of 120 days. The results indicate that blending the polymers with PEO achieves better results concerning long-term stability and overall efficiency. Especially the mixtures with PAN and PVDF show only slight signs of deterioration after 120 days of measurement.

Highlights

IntroductionIn the context of climate change and severe problems regarding fossil fuel and nuclear waste, harvesting of solar energy is a potential alternative to fulfil future energy needs as it is a rapidly growing renewable energy technology [1]
The environmental friendliness of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) can be further improved by using non-toxic materials, such as widely available natural dyes [4,5]
The investigation of different polymeric materials, regarding their long-term stability and efficiency is an important step towards textile DSSCs

Summary

Introduction

In the context of climate change and severe problems regarding fossil fuel and nuclear waste, harvesting of solar energy is a potential alternative to fulfil future energy needs as it is a rapidly growing renewable energy technology [1]. One challenge concerning conventional semiconductor-based photovoltaics are their relatively high production costs due to the need of a cleanroom and uncommon elements like indium [2,3]. Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), fabricated in a simple process without a cleanroom and from inexpensive materials, offer a good alternative [1,4,5]. The environmental friendliness of DSSCs can be further improved by using non-toxic materials, such as widely available natural dyes [4,5]

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