Issue 8, 2012

A free-standing aligned-carbon-nanotube/nanocomposite foil as an efficient counter electrode for dye solar cells

Abstract

A novel free-standing and flexible counter electrode for dye solar cells has been developed by conveniently transferring a vertically aligned carbon nanotube forest onto an oxygen-plasma-treated flexible, free-standing and conductive nanocomposite foil. Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes were first grown onto an aluminium foil by chemical vapour deposition and then transferred to the nanocomposite surface by hot pressing. The most meaningful electrochemical parameters have been quantitatively analyzed by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry in order to elucidate how the implementation of the anisotropic carbon nanotube top layer impacts the ultimate catalytic performances of the plate. Such an engineered counter electrode is able to guarantee a fast and effective reduction of the iodide-based electrolyte as well as to provide a solar conversion efficiency that is comparable with a typical Pt/TCO-coated rigid counter electrode. A photocurrent density higher than 13.36 mA cm−2 along with a solar conversion efficiency of 7.26% have been reported for the dye solar cell mounting a counter-electrode based on vertically aligned carbon nanotubes implanted onto a conductive nanocomposite plate.

Graphical abstract: A free-standing aligned-carbon-nanotube/nanocomposite foil as an efficient counter electrode for dye solar cells

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
07 Mar 2012
Accepted
25 May 2012
First published
30 May 2012

Energy Environ. Sci., 2012,5, 8377-8383

A free-standing aligned-carbon-nanotube/nanocomposite foil as an efficient counter electrode for dye solar cells

F. Malara, M. Manca, M. Lanza, C. Hübner, E. Piperopoulos and G. Gigli, Energy Environ. Sci., 2012, 5, 8377 DOI: 10.1039/C2EE21569A

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