Experimental and theoretical study of highly porous lignocellulose assisted metal oxide photoelectrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Here, we have manufactured extremely porous photoelectrodes comprised of ZnO/TiO2 by adding lignocellulose (LC) fibers extracted from the self-growing plant (Lily) on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate using doctor blade technique for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) uses and first-principle calculations were performed for electronic band structures and density of state (DOS). Density functional theory (DFT) results revealed a high conductivity and narrow electronic bandgap after doping with LC. Experimental results showed the effect of the addition of LC in ZnO (ZnO + LC) and TiO2 (TiO2 + LC) on the structure, morphology, and power conversion efficiency (PCE) was studied in detail using powder X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, UV-visible spectroscopy, and solar simulant. The addition of LC in ZnO/TiO2 increases the porosity and surface area for higher dye loading and light-harvesting while decreasing the backward scattering of electrons. These developments result in a 38% increase in PCE of (ZnO + LC) as related to the ZnO based DSSC and a 104% increase in the case of (TiO2 + LC) based DSSC. In this work, we express that the development of highly porous metal oxide nano-composites by mixing LC fibers which may solve the electrolyte leakage issue and enhance the porosity of the photoelectrodes and thus enhance the PCE of DSSCs. (C) 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of King Saud University.

Automated summary

The addition of LC fibers in ZnO/TiO2 photoelectrodes increases porosity and surface area, allowing for higher dye loading and light absorption, while decreasing electron backscattering. This innovative development significantly enhances the PCE of ZnO/TiO2 photoelectrodes.