Carbon/carbon nanocomposites as counter electrodes for platinum free dye-sensitized solar cells

• Carbon/carbon composites were employed as counter electrodes for DSSCs.
• The dispersion of carbonaceous materials in composite films was analyzed by TEM.
• Solar cells assembled with carbon electrodes were characterized by IV and EIS measurements.
• The solar cell assembled with AC + MWCNTs + GR CE shows PCE of 10.73%.

In this work, carbonaceous materials and their combinations with each other were used as counter electrodes for efficient dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). A small amount of TiO2 paste was also incorporated in each electrocatalyst to increase the adhesion between the carbon material and the conductive glass substrate. The dispersion of carbonaceous materials in composite films was characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Electrocatalytic characteristics of carbon/carbon catalysts are systematically investigated by electrochemical techniques, such as cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. Solar cells assembled with carbon/carbon composite counter electrodes were characterized by photocurrent–voltage characteristic and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements. The results indicate that under optimal conditions, the solar cell assembled with carbon/carbon composite counter electrode containing activated carbon, multi-walled carbon nanotube and graphene, shows power conversion efficiency of 10.73%. This photovoltaic performance is comparable with 11.20% for the platinum-based dye-sensitized solar cell. The results exhibit that carbonaceous material is an encouraging alternative for low-cost DSSCs.

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