• Title of article

    Functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes for enhanced photocurrent in dye-sensitized solar cells

  • Author/Authors

    Nair Omana Amma Sreekala, Chandra Sekharan School of Biotechnology - Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham - Amritapuri Campus - Kollam, India , Indiramma, Jinchu School of Biotechnology - Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham - Amritapuri Campus - Kollam, India , Subramanya Pavan Kumar, Kandala Bala School of Biotechnology - Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham - Amritapuri Campus - Kollam, India , Savithriamma Sreelatha, Karyaveettil School of Biotechnology - Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham - Amritapuri Campus - Kollam, India , Saran Roy, Mahesh School of Biotechnology - Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham - Amritapuri Campus - Kollam, India

  • Pages
    8
  • From page
    1
  • To page
    8
  • Abstract
    The influence of the incorporation of nitric acid-treated (functionalized) multi-walled carbon nanotubes (f-MWCNTs) and unmodified MWCNTs in TiO2 films are investigated by observing the photocurrent-voltage characteristics of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) with and without MWCNTs. The short-circuit photocurrent (Jsc) of the modified DSSC increased by 46% compared with that of a cell with plain TiO2 film. The open-circuit voltage remained the same for all cases. The enhanced Jsc is explained by the increased surface area of the film, enhanced cluster formation of TiO2 particles around f-MWCNTs, and improved interconnectivity of TiO2 particles in the presence of f-MWCNTs. The efficiency of the cell increased by 45% due to Jsc enhancement.
  • Keywords
    Multi-walled carbon nanotubes , Dye-sensitized solar cell , Short-circuit photocurrent , Open-circuit voltage , Cluster formation
  • Journal title
    Astroparticle Physics
  • Serial Year
    2013
  • Record number

    2435976