The effect of pre-thermal treatment of TiO2 nano-particles on the performances of dye-sensitized solar cells

We have demonstrated the effect of pre-thermal treatment of TiO2 nano-particles on the performances of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) by using high specific surface area and anatase only TiO2 nano-particles (ca. 340m2/g, Sachtleben Chemie GmgH, represented as HK). TiO2 particles and thin films we...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Solar energy materials and solar cells 2006-05, Vol.90 (7-8), p.967-981
Main Authors: NGUYEN, The-Vinh, LEE, Hyun-Cheol, YANG, O-Bong
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Applied sciences
Energy
Exact sciences and technology
Natural energy
Photovoltaic conversion
Solar cells. Photoelectrochemical cells
Solar energy
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Summary:We have demonstrated the effect of pre-thermal treatment of TiO2 nano-particles on the performances of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) by using high specific surface area and anatase only TiO2 nano-particles (ca. 340m2/g, Sachtleben Chemie GmgH, represented as HK). TiO2 particles and thin films were characterized with X-ray diffraction, FT-IR, UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and FE-SEM. The photoelectrochemical properties of the thin films and the performances of DSCs were measured by photocurrent densities, AC impedance spectra and photocurrent-voltage curves. Before coating the raw TiO2 of HK (HK-raw) on transparent conducting oxide (TCO) glass for DSC fabrication, pre-thermal treatment of HK-raw by calcining at 450 deg C (HK-450) was an essential step to achieve the optimum properties in terms of morphological feature, crystallinity, specific surface area and photocurrent density. HK-450 film showed the high adsorption of dye, high photocurrent density and low interface resistance between TiO2 and TCO glass, RTiO2/TCO and TiO2 and redox electrolyte, RCT, resulting in the superior photovoltaic performance on the DSC fabricated with HK-450 and Eosin Y (or ruthenium 535 bis-TBA) at AM 1.5: open-circuit voltage of 0.62V (0.77V), short-circuit current of 3.03mA/cm2 (22.80mA/cm2), fill factor of 0.57 (0.44) and overall conversion efficiency of 1.06%, (7.52%). Accordingly, the optimization between the morphological feature, specific surface area and photocurrent density of TiO2 substrate is promising to accomplish the improved overall conversion efficiency of DSC.
ISSN:0927-0248
1879-3398
DOI:10.1016/j.solmat.2005.06.001