A combined TiO2 structure with nanotubes and nanoparticles for improving photoconversion efficiency in dye-sensitized solar cells

A novel combined structure with a mixture of TiO2 nanotubes and nanoparticles was fabricated by anodization of Ti, followed by a controlled annealing post-treatment. The TiO2 nanoparticles with the average diameter of 40 nm were uniformly dispersed on the surface of TiO2 nanotubes with the diameter of 110–130 nm and the length of 15 μm. The photoelectric behavior of the as-prepared photoanode in dye-sensitized solar cells was analyzed by the measurements of I–V and EIS. It was found that the energy conversion efficiency of the solar cell with composite photoanode was 5.75%, enhanced up to 25.8% compared to that of the photoanode of pure TiO2 nanotube structure in the same condition.

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► A new combined TiO2 structure with nanotubes and nanoparticles was developed.
► It was prepared by an anodizing and sealed annealing process.
► This structure obviously increased the dye loading and liquid circulation.
► This structure maintains a good property with less interface recombination via EIS analysis.
► This structure clearly enhanced the conversion efficiency of DSSC.