Abstract:
Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are known for their aesthetic properties, not limited to
colour tuneability and transparency, but are also promising renewable energy technology that
can efficiently harvest sunlight to generate electricity without releasing toxic gases. DSSCs
are one of the potential candidates for fabricating colourful and see-through solar cells for
energy-harvesting aesthetic windows. However, a trade-off between transparency and power
conversion efficiency (PCE) has to be tackled amicably to realize solar cells with good PCE
and transparency. Judicious selection of dyes to bypass light absorption in the high eyesensitivity region (500 – 600 nm) is one of the plausible solutions. Most importantly,
developing novel counter electrode materials using facile preparation techniques, low-cost
materials, and environmentally friendly conditions helps overcome the limitations of
commonly used but expensive and corroding metals, thereby improving the PCE of DSSCs.
Herein, we report the synthesis of a novel hybrid nitrogen-doped reduced graphene oxideSr0.7Sm0.3Fe0.4Co0.6O2.65 (N-RGO-SSFC) nanocomposite using the thermal treatment method.
The N-RGO-SSFC nanocomposites were characterized using microscopic and spectroscopic
techniques and applied as counter electrodes in DSSCs. Scanning electron microscopy
images revealed the presence of N-RGO sheets decorated by SSFC nanoparticles. The
introduction of SSFC nanoparticles onto N-RGO sheets led to the formation of
nanocomposites with a tetragonal structure, a surface area of 178.0 m2 g
-1
, an electrical
conductivity of 13.02 S cm-1
, and a charge transfer resistance of 10.6 Ω. The N-RGO-SSFC
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nanocomposite counter electrodes resulted in DSSCs with an enhanced PCE of 6.64% due to
the formation of excellent electron transfer pathways. This outperformed DSSCs based on
the Pt reference electrode with a PCE of 5.52%. Hence, N-RGO-SSFC nanocomposites can
be applied as a potential counter-electrode material in DSSCs.
