Browsing by Subject "Dye-sensitized solar cells"

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    Amyloid-like peptide nanofiber templated titania nanostructures as dye sensitized solar cell anodic materials
    (Royal Society of Chemistry, 2013) Acar, H.; Garifullin, R.; Aygun, L. E.; Okyay, Ali Kemal; Güler, Mustafa O.
    One-dimensional titania nanostructures can serve as a support for light absorbing molecules and result in an improvement in the short circuit current (Jsc) and open circuit voltage (Voc) as a nanostructured and high-surface-area material in dye-sensitized solar cells. Here, self-assembled amyloid-like peptide nanofibers were exploited as an organic template for the growth of one-dimensional titania nanostructures. Nanostructured titania layers were utilized as anodic materials in dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The photovoltaic performance of the DSSC devices was assessed and an enhancement in the overall cell performance compared to unstructured titania was observed.
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    Lithium salt-nonionic surfactant lyotropic liquid crystalline gel-electrolytes with redox couple for dye sensitized solar cells
    (Royal Society of Chemistry, 2016) Yılmaz, E.; Olutaş, E. B.; Barım, G.; Bandara, J.; Dag, Ö.
    Lithium salt (LiCl, LiBr, LiI, or LiNO3) and a non-ionic surfactant (such as 10-lauryl ether, C12E10) form lyotropic liquid crystalline (LLC) mesophases in the presence of a small amount of water. The mesophases can be prepared as gels by mixing all the ingredients in one pot or in the solution phase that they can be prepared by coating over any substrate where the LLC phase is formed by evaporating excess solvent. The second method is easier and produces the same mesophase as the first method. A typical composition of the LLC phases consists of 2-3 water per salt species depending on the counter anion. The LiI-C12E10 mesophases can also be prepared by adding I2 to the media to introduce an I-/I3 - redox couple that may be used as a gel-electrolyte in a dye-sensitized solar cell. Even though the mesophases contain a large amount of water in the media, this does not affect the cell performance. The water molecules in the mesophase are in the hydration sphere of the ions and do not act like bulk water, which is harmful to the anode of the dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). There are two major drawbacks of the salt-surfactant LLC mesophases in the DSSCs; one is the diffusion of the gels into the pores of the anode electrode and the other is the low ionic conductivity. The first issue was partially overcome by introducing the gel content as a solution and the gelation was carried in/over the pores of the dye modified titania films. To increase the ionic conductivity of the gels, other salts (such as LiCl, LiBr, and LiNO3) with better ionic conductivity were added to the media, however, those gels behave less effectively than pure LiI/I2 systems. Overall, the DSSCs constructed using the LLC electrolyte display high short circuit current (Isc of around 10 mA), high open circuit voltage (Voc of 0.81 V) and good fill factor (0.69) and good efficiency (3.3%). There is still room for improvement in addressing the above issues in order to enhance the cell efficiency by developing new methods of introducing the gel-electrolytes into the mesopores of the anode electrode.
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    Self-assembled peptide nanofiber templated ALD growth of TiO2 and ZnO semiconductor nanonetworks
    (Wiley - V C H Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 2016) Garifullin, R.; Eren, H.; Ulusoy, T. G.; Okyay, Ali Kemal; Bıyıklı, Necmi; Güler, Mustafa O.
    Here peptide amphiphile (PA) nanofiber network is exploited as a three‐dimensional soft template to construct anatase TiO2 and wurtzite ZnO nanonetworks. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique is used to coat the organic nanonetwork template with TiO2and ZnO. ALD method enables uniform and conformal coatings with precisely controlled TiO2 and ZnO thickness. The resulting semiconducting metal oxide nanonetworks are utilized as anodic materials in dye‐sensitized solar cells. Effect of metal oxide layer thickness on device performance is studied. The devices based on thin TiO2 coatings (<10 nm) demonstrate considerable dependence on material thickness, whereas thicker (>17 nm) ZnO‐based devices do not show an explicit correlation.