Issue 14, 2012

Polymer-dispersed MWCNT gel electrolytes for high performance of dye-sensitized solar cells

Abstract

A hybrid of polymer-dispersed multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) was utilized in networking with the conventional composition of gel electrolyte in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) to purposely enhance the cell efficiency. The requisite polymer as the dispersant is structurally tailored for its functionalities consisting of poly(oxyethylene)-segmented amides and imides. The existence of the dispersant is multi-functional for first de-bundling the originally aggregated MWCNT and subsequently networking with the conventional gel electrolyte, poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF–HFP)/LiI system. The gel electrolyte comprised of only 0.25 wt% MWCNT/POEM in the finely dispersed state was fabricated into a quasi-solid-state DSSC which showed high power-conversion efficiency (η) of 6.86% and short-circuit current density (JSC) of 15.3 mA cm−2 at the test of 100 mW cm−2 irradiation. The DSSC efficiency was significantly improved from the use of the unmodified gel electrolyte having the values of JSC = 9.6 mA cm−2 and η = 4.63%. The enhancement was further confirmed by the electrochemical impedance spectra analyses for the lowest Warburg resistance (Rw). The fine dispersion of MWCNT in the polymeric dispersant was characterized by UV-Vis, TEM, FT-IR and DSC. The finding indicates the role of MWCNT for homogenizing the amorphous PVDF–HFP and facilitating the diffusion state of I/I3 ion pairs in this electrolyte system.

Graphical abstract: Polymer-dispersed MWCNT gel electrolytes for high performance of dye-sensitized solar cells

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
24 Nov 2011
Accepted
23 Jan 2012
First published
01 Mar 2012

J. Mater. Chem., 2012,22, 6982-6989

Polymer-dispersed MWCNT gel electrolytes for high performance of dye-sensitized solar cells

Y. Wang, K. Huang, R. Dong, C. Liu, C. Wang, K. Ho and J. Lin, J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 6982 DOI: 10.1039/C2JM16131A

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