Dye Sensitized Solar Cell Based on Polyaniline-Carbon Nanotubes/Graphite Composite

In this work, polyaniline (PANI) base-single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) composite counter electrode (CE) and N3 ruthenium dye sensitized TiO 2 , prepared using hydrothermal method, photoelectrode were assembled to form a dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC). Three different compositions (ITO/PANI, ITO/PANI-SWCNTs and ITO/PANI-SWCNTs-graphite) of counter electrodes were fabricated and used for constructing different DSSCs. The morphologies of PANI-SWCNTs counter electrode and TiO 2 mesoporous film surfaces were investigated using scanning electron microscope (SEM). The electrical properties of the resultant solar cells were investigated by measuring the current density–voltage (J-V) under illumination condition and impedance measurements. The photovoltaic cell characteristics, i.e., open circuit voltage (V oc ), short circuit current density (J sc ), fill factor (FF) and energy conversion efficiency (η) were evaluated under illumination and were found to be 530 mV, 12 mA/cm 2 , 0.3 and 1.8%, respectively for ITO/PANI-SWCNTs/graphite/electrolyte/ TiO 2 -N3 dye/ITO heterostructure. The depositing of a graphite layer on the PANI/SWCNTs nanocomposite creates a novel structure for the counter electrode and enhances the photovoltaic cell efficiency by 80%.