Application In Dye-sensitized Solar Cells Research Articles

Performance enhancement of catechin-graphene quantum dot nanocomposites functionalized with carboxyl and doped/decorated with boron towards dye-sensitized solar cell applications: DFT and TD-DFT calculations

A photosensitizer plays a vital role in adjusting the optical and electrochemical properties that affect the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Therefore, it should meet critical requirements for efficient operation of DSSCs. This study proposes catechin, a natural compound, as a photosensitizer and modifies its properties through hybridization with graphene quantum dots (GQDs). Density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT methods were used to investigate the geometrical, optical, and electronic properties. Twelve nanocomposites of catechin attached to carboxylated/uncarboxylated GQD were designed. The GQD was further doped with central/terminal boron atom or decorated with boron groups (organo-borane, borinic, and boronic groups). The available experimental data of parent catechin was used to validate the elected functional and basis set. Through hybridization, the energy gap of catechin was significantly narrowed by 50.66–61.48%. Therefore, its absorption was shifted from the UV to the visible region which matches the solar spectrum. Also, increasing the absorption intensity led to high light-harvesting efficiency close to unity that can increase current generation. The energy levels of designed dye nanocomposites are appropriately aligned with the conduction band and redox potential, indicating the feasibility of electron injection and regeneration. The observed properties confirm that the reported materials exhibit characteristics of interest thus they could be promising candidates for applications in DSSCs.

Potential of transition metal sulfides, Cu2ZnSnS4 as inorganic absorbing layers in dye-sensitized solar cells

Organic dye sets a benchmark for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) application. Replacing the organic dyes with inorganic phases poses a significant challenge. Without organic dyes, efficiency decreases dramatically due to loss of charge transfer. Thus, surface modification techniques are widely considered to be the key to reducing the electron recombination, suppressing the dark currents and increasing efficiency of DSSC. Using multiple absorbent materials with different energy gaps/band gap values could broaden the DSSC's photon absorption range. This study investigated the potential applications of transition metal sulfides (TMS), kesterite (Cu2ZnSnS4, CZTS) as a promising inorganic absorber layer of DSSCs. Based on the current-voltage measurement, a lower molar ratio of milled CZTS compared to the N719-dye produced a stable DSSC with a power conversion efficiency (η), short-circuit current density (Jsc), and open-circuit voltage (Voc) of 4.75%, 13.99 mA cm−2, and 0.75 V, respectively. Furthermore, incident photon-to-current efficiency (IPCE) analysis exhibited an improved number of incident photons harvested by standard DSSC from 60% to 85% with and without the presence of CZTS. Even when light harvesting reached up to 80%, a higher concentration of CZTS content compared to the N719 dye produced an unstable solar cell device with a low Jsc and η due to electron loss through the recombination process. This was confirmed by the recombination resistance (Rrec) determined by the impedance spectroscopy (EIS), which found that the suppression of the Rrec at a lower ratio concentration between CZTS/N719-dye generated the highest η. The results that the use of the closest concentration of inorganic and organic co-sensitizers can improve the stability and overall performance of the developed DSSC. This approach has been regarded as the most sustainable economically viable means of producing cheap solar cells to convert the largest amount of energy from the solar spectrum to electricity.

Effect of D-limonene additive in copper redox-based quasi-solid-state electrolytes on the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells

In dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), the copper redox mediator has been proven to enhance power conversion efficiency (PCE) due to the fairly low driving force for dye regeneration. In this work, we prepared six blended biopolymer-based electrolytes (E1 to E6) to regenerate N3 Dye absorbed in TiO2 for dye-sensitized solar cell application. The regeneration behavior of three different electron-withdrawing substituents on 2-(pyridin-2-yl)− 1 H-benzo[d]imidazole ligands coordinated with copper metal, its forms [Cu(mpimb)2]1+/2+ (methyl 4-((2-(pyridin-2-yl)− 1 H-benzo[d]imidazol-1-yl)methyl) benzoate), [Cu(pbimb)2]1+/2+ (4-((2-(pyridin-2-yl)− 1 H- benzo[d]imidazol-1-yl)methyl) benzonitrile) and [Cu(ptpbi)2]1+/2+ (2-(pyridin-2-yl)− 1(4-(trifluoromethyl)benzyl)− 1 H-benzo[d]imidazole). Commencing their electrochemical and photophysical properties determines the molecular orbital energy level of the complex. A quasi-solid-state electrolyte (QSSE) medium is blended in a biopolymer host (pectin and 2-hydroxyethylcellulose). Additionally, a comparison study has been performed between commercially available pyridine-based-additive [tert-butyl pyridine (TBP)], and a bio-organic compound extracted from orange peel waste (1-methyl-4-(prop-1-en-2-yl) cyclohex-1-ene (limonene)) used as an additive material. Using these newly designed copper redox mediators and additives, the six sets of DSSCs devices has constructed. The cell structure is assembled as TiO2/N3 dye/electrolyte (E1 to E6)/Pt. Among the fabricated devices, C1 and C2 redox couples [Cu(ptpbi)2]1+/2+ having CF3 substituent exhibit maximum Voc and Jsc. Interestingly, the device with limonene additive exhibited PCE up to 4.4 %, whereas with TBP, it showed 4.0 % efficiency. The PCE results of the C2 device sustained some electrochemical factors such as Bulk Resistance (Rb =142.0 Ω), Recombination Resistance (Rrec = 191.4 Ω), Charge Transfer Resistance (Rct = 98.84 Ω), Chemical capacitance (Cμ = 7.882 μF), Ionic Conductivity (σ = 2.816 ×10−04 S cm−1), electron lifetime (τn = 16.24 μs), Diffusion length (Ln =1.39 × 10−01 mm).

Computational Study on D-π-A-Based Metal-Free Donor-Tuned Molecules for Efficient Organic Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

In this paper, newly metal-free four donor-[Formula: see text]-acceptor (D-[Formula: see text]-A) molecules (C1D1–C1D4) were designed and used for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) application, based on literature C1-1. Tetrahydroquinoline, thiophene, and 2-cyanoacrylic acid act as the electron-D, spacer, and electron-A/anchoring groups for all dyes, respectively, while the donor part was tuned and the effect was examined. The density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT (TD-DFT) have been used on the electronic transitions, geometric structures, absorption properties, electron injection ([Formula: see text]), dye regeneration ([Formula: see text]), light harvesting efficiency (LHE), ground and excited states of dipole moments ([Formula: see text]), open-circuit photovoltage ([Formula: see text]), molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) and Mulliken population analysis (MPA) of the dyes. The TD-DFT method using different functionals with exchange-correlational (XC) and long-range correlated (LC) was calculated to obtain literature data. The computational outcomes have displayed that the Coulomb-attenuating method (CAM-B3LYP) in conjunction with a 6-31G(d,p) basis set was proficient in calculating the UV-Vis spectra of the molecules. The frontier molecular orbitals’ (FMOs) contribution of the HOMOs and LUMOs of C1D1-C1D4 molecules can be confirming positive consequences on the regeneration and electron injection processes. In particular, C1D4 (N(CH3)2) molecule shows a smaller energy gap ([Formula: see text]), longer wavelength, high [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. To conclude, these outcomes display that the calculated C1D1–C1D4 molecules are capable applicants to deliver better performance of the DSSCs.

Preparation and characterization of laser-induced graphene derived from polyimide for dye-sensitized solar cell applications

The synthesis of laser-induced graphene (LIG) from polyimide (PI) sheets provides a cost-effective and direct patterning approach for graphene-based electronic devices. However, the fabrication of LIG-based electrodes toward photovoltaic applications urgently needs to be explored. Herein, facile high-yield production of the porous LIG counter electrodes for DSSC applications was demonstrated by laser induction of PI film. The electrical conductivity and electrocatalytic activity of the LIG electrodes increased with the applied laser power due to the formation of a unique hierarchical porous graphene structure with abundant edges and defects, which resulted in an evident improvement in power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 3.56%. In addition, a one-step in situ synthesis of Pt/LIG composite was further demonstrated by laser irradiation on the PI sheet with low loadings of Pt precursor to obtain a Pt-less counter electrode. It is found that the Pt/LIG composite electrode-based DSSC achieved a higher PCE of 3.80%, which is comparable to that of pure Pt-based DSSC. This study demonstrates that the porous LIG from PI films is a promising candidate as a carbonaceous counter electrode for DSSCs.

Probing novel photoanodes relying on CuBiSe/metal' oxides nanocomposites-based dye-sensitizing solar cells

CuBiSe / Metal oxides (TiO2, V2O5, and ZnO) nanocomposites were synthesized by a simple and low-cost hydrothermal technique for application in Dye-Sensitised Solar Cells (DSSCs). XRD, XPS, SEM with EDX analysis, FTIR spectrum, UV visible Spectroscopy, PL spectrum, Hall Effect analysis, and Impedance analysis were performed to evaluate the prepared nanocomposites. The photovoltaic performance of DSSCs which were constructed with CBS/ TiO2, CBS/V2O5, and CBS/ZnO photoanodes were investigated. With a short-circuit, photocurrent density of 3.728 mA cm2, an open circuit voltage of 0.398 V, a fill factor of 0.72, and a Power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 1.07% was achieved for CBS/V2O5 DSSCs device, which is greater than that of DSSCs devices using CBS/ TiO2 and CBS/ZnO based photo-anodes (PCE = 0.62, and 0.37%). The obtained results propose that the prepared nanocomposite is an appropriate photo-anodic material for DSSCs applications.

Synthesis and Characterization of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles by Electrochemical Method for Environmentally Friendly Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell Applications (DSSCs)

In this research, zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) were made utilizing an electrochemical method. Which has the advantages of being quick, simple, producing no side products, and being inexpensive. Advanced techniques such as x-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis), energy dispersive x-ray (EDX), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used to characterize the generated zinc oxide. Using methyl orange dye, the analysis showed that the shape of zinc oxide nanoparticles was rice-like and the band gap value was 3.62. ZnO NPs is used in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) it has many advantages including its ease of use and low cost, its ability to be integrated into buildings, and its fantastic performance under diffuse and indoor lighting. DSSCs have attracted more attention and have been deemed viable alternatives to conventional photovoltaic devices. The solar cell's efficiency (η %) and fill factor with methyl orange as a dye were 2.3, and 74.1, respectively.

Predicting the dye-sensitized solar cell performance of novel linear carbon chain-based dyes: insights from DFT simulations.

In this paper, we employ density functional theory (DFT) simulations to predict the energy conversion efficiency of a novel class of organic dyes based on linear carbon chain (LCC) linkers for application in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). We investigate the role of the anchoring group, which serves as a bridge connecting the linker and the surface. Specifically, we compare the performance of cyanoacrylic acid, dyes PY-4N and PY-3N, with that of phosphonate derivatives, dyes PY-4NP and PY-3NP, wherein the carboxylic group of the cyanoacrylic moiety is replaced with phosphonic acid. The observed variations in the UV/VIS absorption spectra have a slight impact on the light harvesting efficiency (LHE). Based on the empirical parameters we have taken into account, the electron injection efficiency (Φinj) and electron collection efficiency (ηcoll) values do not impact the short-circuit current density (JSC) values of all the studied dyes. The open-circuit voltage (Voc) is theoretically predicted using the improved normal model (INM) method. Among the dyes, PY-4N and PY-3N demonstrate the highest Voc values. This can be attributed to a more favorable recombination rate value, which is related to the energy gap between the HOMO level of the dyes and the conduction band minimum (CBM) of the surface. Dyes PY-4N and PY-3N are predicted to demonstrate remarkably high photoelectric conversion efficiency (PCE) values of approximately 21.79% and 16.52%, respectively, and therefore, they are expected to be potential candidates as organic dyes for applications in DSSCs. It is worth noting that PY-4NP and PY-3NP exhibit strong adsorption energy on the surface and interesting PCE values of 11.66% and 8.29%, respectively. This opens up possibilities for their application in DSSCs either as standalone sensitizers or as co-sensitizers alongside metal-free organic dyes or organic-inorganic perovskite solar cells.

Tailoring the π-system of benzimidazole ligands towards stable light-harvesting cyclometalated iridium(III) complexes.

The synthesis, structure, optical and redox properties as well as photovoltaic studies of iridium(III) complexes with cyclometalated 2-arylbenzimidazoles decorated with various polyaromatic fragments and an ancillary aromatic β-diketone are reported. Despite the strong preference of the iridium(III) ion to form bis- or tris-cyclometalated complexes in which the metal participates in five-membered metallacycles, the cyclometalation of the benzimidazole ligands containing rigid π-extended systems yields dimeric complexes containing strained five- or six-membered metallacycles and allows for generating an extremely rare monocyclometalated complex. X-ray crystallography shows that the steric strain observed in the dimers is retained in heteroleptic diketonate complexes which is also corroborated by gas-phase DFT calculations. While emission maxima and redox potentials of the heteroleptic complexes exhibit just a moderate variation upon the change of the cyclometalated ligands, the extension of the π-system of the benzimidazole ligands give the complexes remarkable light absorption in the visible spectral range, which meets the requirements for application in dye-sensitized solar cells. At the titania photoanodes, these iridium dyes retain their optical properties and exhibit power conversion efficiencies under standard AM 1.5 G conditions comparable to those of other iridium-based sensitizers. These results demonstrate that the size and position of the π-extended fragment in cyclometalated ligands can modulate not only the electronic structure of the corresponding iridium(III) complexes, but also affect their composition, structure and reactivity that may find implications in future design of emerging iridium dyes, emitters and catalysts.

Design, synthesis and functionalization of BODIPY dyes: applications in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) and photodynamic therapy (PDT)

The present review focuses on the design, synthesis, functionalization, and application of BODIPY dyes in dye-sensitized solar cells and photodynamic therapy.

A novel poly(acrylonitrile)/poly(ethylene glycol)-based polymer gel electrolyte for high efficiency dye sensitized solar cells

This research article reports on a systematic approach to the development of polymer gel electrolytes (PGEs) for the applications of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs).

Synthesis of Aluminum Oxide Nanoparticles and Their Applications in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells as a Clean Energy

In this research, the aluminum oxide nanoparticles (Al2O3 NPs) were prepared using electrochemical method. The Features of the electrochemical process are ease and speed, free side product, and economical. The prepared aluminum oxide was characterized using many techniques like x-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), ultra violate – visible (UV-Vis), energy dispersive x-ray (EDX), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The shape of the prepared aluminum oxide was in the form of nanowire and has an energy gap of 3.9. Since fossil fuels are rapidly running out and their consumption increases the average global temperature, which has an impact on human life, the energy crisis is the main global concern. Consequently, in order to generate energy, dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) must be produced. The results indicate that the efficiency (η %) of the solar cell using methyl orange as a dye and fill factor were 1.17 and 56.8, respectively.

Model systems for dye-sensitized solar cells: cyanidin-silver nanocluster hybrids at TiO2 support.

Theoretical study of structural, optical, and photovoltaic properties of novel bio-nano hybrids (dye-nanocluster), as well as at TiO2 surface model support is presented in the context of the application for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). A group of anthocyanidin dyes (pelargonidin, cyanidin, delphinidin, peonidin, petunidin, and malvidin) represented by cyanidin covalently bound to silver nanoclusters (NCs) with even or odd number of valence electrons have been investigated using DFT and TDDFT approach. The key role of nanoclusters as acceptors in hybrids cyanidin-NC has been shown. The nanoclusters with an even number of valence electrons are suitable as acceptors in hybrids. The interaction of bio-nano (cyanidin-NC) hybrid with the TiO2 surface model has been investigated in the context of absorption in near-infrared (NIR) and charge separation due to donor and acceptor subunits. Altogether, the theoretical concept serves to identify the key steps in the design of novel solar cells based on bio-nano hybrids at TiO2 surface for DSSC application.

Synthesis of TiO2/ZnO photoanodes on FTO conductive glass for photovoltaic applications

For oxide semiconductors for application in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), titanium dioxide conjugated with zinc oxide thin films was synthesized and characterized. The UV (ultraviolet) spectrum characterization showed a peak of absorbance at around 355 nm, with a band gap of 3.25 eV and reflectance around 85%. Such characteristics allowed the fabrication of DSSCs with N719 dye, under simulated light of 100 mW/cm2. The highest efficiency of 1.17% was at 5% titanium dioxide and 4 h of dye immersion.

A morphological study of bicontinuous concentric lamellar silica synthesized at atmospheric pressure and its application as an internal micro-reflector in dye-sensitized solar cells.

KCC-1, a nanostructured silica material with a bicontinuous concentric lamellar (bcl) morphology, provides plenty of functional characteristics, such as an open channel structure, excellent accessibility, and a large surface area. Although bcl silica exhibits various superior properties, studies on its morphology and its application in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are still limited. Therefore, this work aims to study the influence of the synthesis time on the morphology of bcl silica. Moreover, we used the synthesized bcl silica as internal micro-reflectors in DSSCs. The bcl silica was synthesized using the reflux method by varying synthesis times. The morphology of bcl silica was observed using FESEM and HRTEM. FESEM images show that bcl silica has bicontinuous lamellar walls arranged concentrically to form spherical particles. As the synthesis time increases, the average particle size of bcl silica increases. The quantization of bcl silica binary images shows that the average lamellar cross-sectional area ratio decreases with increasing synthesis time. The simulation of the Cahn-Hilliard's spinodal decomposition model using MATLAB also describes the lamellar cross-sectional area ratio of bcl silica. In addition, to characterize the FESEM image's texture, a Shannon entropy calculation was performed. The line and circular gray value intensity profiles of the HRTEM image show that bcl silica has a denser core than the outer part. The denser core proves that the lamellae in bcl silica are concentrically arranged towards the particle core. Furthermore, we added bcl silica to a photoanode to see the effect of bcl characteristics on the DSSC performance. The results show that the bcl silica significantly improves the light-harvesting efficiency in DSSCs due to its low refractive index and open channel structure.

Investigation of the structural and electrochemical properties of a ZnO–SnO2 composite and its electrical properties for application in dye-sensitized solar cells

This study compares photovoltaic and electrochemical properties of nano sized ZnO–SnO2 composite as photoanode material made by a simple but effective mechanical mixing method with Ru N719 dye for energy harvesting applications in DSSCs.

Effect of regio-specific arylamine substitution on novel π-extended zinc salophen complexes: density functional and time-dependent density functional study on DSSC applications.

A series of π-extended salophen-type Schiff-base zinc(ii) complexes, e.g., zinc-salophen complexes (ZSC), were investigated toward potential applications for dye-sensitized solar cells. The ZSC dyes adopt linear-, X-, or π-shaped geometries either with the functionalization of 1 donor/1 acceptor or 2 donors/2 acceptors to achieve a push-pull type molecular structure. The frontier molecular orbitals, light-harvesting properties as well as charge transfer characters against regio-specific substitution of donor/acceptor groups were studied by using density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT). The results reveal that all ZSC dyes of D-ZnS-π-A geometry (where D, S, and A denote to donor, salophen ligand, and acceptor, respectively) exhibit relatively lower HOMO energy compared to the structurally resembled porphyrin dye YD2-o-C8. Natural transition orbital (NTO) and electron-hole separation (EHS) approaches clearly differentiate the linear type YD-series dyes from CL-, AJ1-, and AJ2-series dyes because of poor charge transfer (CT) properties. In contrast, the π-shaped AJ2-series and X-shaped AJ1-series dyes outperform the others in a manner of stronger CT characteristics, broadened UV-vis absorption as well as tunable bandgap simply via substitution of p-ethynylbenzoic acids (EBAs) and arylamine donors at salophen 7,8- and 2,3,12,13-positions, respectively. Both EHS and calculated exciton binding energies suggest the strength of CT character for ZSC dyes with an amino donor in the trend TPA > AN > DPA. This work has provided clear illustration toward molecular design of efficient dyes featuring a zinc-salophen backbone.

D–π–A organic dyes derived from the indacenodithiophene core moiety for efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

Indacenodithiophene-core-based D–π–A-type organic sensitizers with two different donor antennas (triphenylamine and phenothiazine) were designed and synthesized for use as light-harvesting materials in dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) applications.

Theoretical Study of D-π-A Structured Malvidin for DSSC Application

Six novel dye molecules were developed from D-π-A system and their suitability for dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) was evaluated using density functional theory (DFT). All the calculation were performed using B3LYP/6-311++ G (d,p) level basis set. The intermolecular charge transfer was examined using Frontier molecular orbitals. The absorption spectra, light harvesting efficiency (LHE) and the electron injection energy (∆Ginject) for all the designed dyes were calculated to compare their photovoltaic performance. All of these dyes developed in this study show great potential as a DSSC sensitizer.

Design and fabrication of mixed phase transition metal chalcogenide hybrid composite (M = Ni & Co) for Pt-free efficient dye-sensitized solar cell applications

Design and fabrication of mixed phase transition metal chalcogenide hybrid composite (M = Ni & Co) for Pt-free efficient dye-sensitized solar cell applications