The role of n–p junction electrodes in minimizing the charge recombination and enhancement of photocurrent and photovoltage in dye sensitized solar cells

The composite electrode comprising n-type TiO₂ and p-type NiO oxides when sensitized with Ru-dye showed short-circuit photocurrent (I_sc) of 17 mA/cm² and open-circuit photovoltage (V_oc) of 730 mV compared to I_sc of 12 mA/cm² and 700 mV for TiO₂ electrodes. Formation of a n–p junction between TiO₂ and NiO oxide layers contributes to the enhanced photocurrent, photovoltage, fill factor and efficiency. In addition to the junction effect, NiO acts as a barrier for charge recombination leading to higher cell performance. The efficiency of the NiO coated TiO₂ solar cell is 30% more than that of bare TiO₂. The negative shift of the flat-band potential of the NiO coated TiO₂ electrode compared to TiO₂ also could be one of the reasons for higher photovoltage observed for TiO₂/NiO electrode. The highest cell efficiencies were obtained immersing TiO₂ thin films in Ni²⁺ solution and converting them to NiO by firing and the optimum NiO coating thickness was found to be only a few angstroms. The energy levels of the excited dye and the band positions of TiO₂ and NiO suggest that the electron transfer from the excited dye to the underlying n-type oxide layer occurs by tunneling through the p-type NiO layer.     

纳米级包覆层厚度对染料敏化太阳电池中电子注入效率和电子寿命的影响

选取氧化钐作为包覆材料, 采用浸渍法对已烧结好的纳米TiO₂多孔薄膜电极进行修饰, 并将其应用于染料敏化太阳电池中, 研究了纳米级氧化钐包覆层厚度及均匀性对染料敏化太阳电池中电子注入效率和电子复合过程的影响和作用机制. 结果表明, 包覆层厚度对电子注入效率和电子复合具有明显影响, 且电子注入效率和电子寿命随包覆层厚度的增加而呈现相反的变化趋势, 包覆层厚度在0.4 nm以内, 电池性能最好.     

绝缘氧化物包覆对钙钛矿太阳电池性能及界面电荷复合动力学的影响

采用浸渍法对钙钛矿太阳电池的介孔层TiO₂纳米颗粒进行了SiO₂、ZrO₂、Al₂O₃几种绝缘氧化物包覆,研究了其对电池光伏性能以及界面电荷复合动力学的影响。结果表明, SiO₂包覆之后,电池的填充因子(FF)从67.6%提高到72.3%,光电转换效率提升到13.7%, ZrO₂和Al₂O₃包覆导致电池开路电压提升约50mV,但是短路电流(J_sc)和填充因子略有下降。采用纳秒时间尺度的瞬态吸收光谱技术,从时间分辨的角度分析了钙钛矿电池界面的电子和空穴的复合寿命,对电池性能的变化给出了合理的解释。     

Influence of pyrimidine additives in electrolytic solution on dye-sensitized solar cell performance

The influence of pyrimidine additives on the performance of a bis(tetrabutylammonium)cis-bis(thiocyanato)bis(2,2′-bipyridine-4-carboxylic acid, 4′-carboxylate)ruthenium(II) dye-sensitized TiO₂ solar cell with an I⁻/I₃⁻ redox electrolyte in acetonitrile was studied. The current–voltage characteristics were measured for more than 10 different pyrimidine derivatives under AM 1.5 (100 mW/cm²). The pyrimidine additives tested had varying effects on the performance of the cell. The additives drastically enhanced the open-circuit photovoltage (V_oc) and the solar energy conversion efficiency (η), but usually reduced the short circuit photocurrent density (J_sc) of the solar cell. Physical and chemical properties of the pyrimidines were computationally calculated in order to determine the reasons for the additive effects on cell performance. Consequently, the greater the calculated partial charge of the nitrogen atoms in the pyrimidine groups, the larger the V_oc but the smaller the J_sc values. The V_oc of the cell also increased as the ionization energy of the pyrimidine molecules decreased. Moreover, as the calculated dipole moment of the pyrimidine derivatives increased, the J_sc value was reduced, but the V_oc value was enhanced. These results suggest that the electron donicity of pyrimidine additives influenced the interaction with TiO₂ electrode and I⁻/I₃⁻ electrolyte, which lead to the changes in dye-sensitized solar cell performance.     

对电极性能对染料敏化太阳电池动力学过程的影响

借助电化学阻抗谱(EIS)和强度调制光电流谱(IMPS)/强度调制光电压谱(IMVS)技术, 采用不同纳米TiO₂多孔薄膜对电极研究了染料敏化太阳电池(DSC)内部2个主要电荷输运过程的内在联系, 并探讨了载Pt材料对DSC界面动力学过程及电池宏观性能的影响机理. 借助等效电路模型分析了基于不同对电极材料电池的填充因子变化原因. 结果表明, 对电极材料的电极电荷交换过程制约光阳极膜内电子传输, 进而影响电池光伏性能; 同时对电极催化反应速率主要与催化剂活性、 载Pt材料电导率和催化反应面积有关.     

Dye-sensitized solar cells made from BaTiO3-coated TiO2 nanoporous electrodes

We reported on the preparation of a thin BaTiO₃-coated layer (2.27 nm) on the surface of TiO₂ and its further application in the dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs). The as-prepared BaTiO₃–TiO₂ films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The performances of the DSCs with and without BaTiO₃ coating were analyzed by cyclic voltammograms (CVs), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and current–voltage measurements. It was found that the BaTiO₃–TiO₂ films with about 12 μm thickness increased the dye adsorption, resulting in increased J_sc. In the meantime, the BaTiO₃ modification on the TiO₂ surface is beneficial to the formation of an energy barrier against the electron transfer from TiO₂ to I₃⁻, providing the increase of V_oc due to the increased electron density in the TiO₂ that is caused by the increased electron lifetime.     

Effects of the addition of titania on the thermal characterization of alumina-supported palladium

The detailed thermal characterization of Pd/TiO₂–Al₂O₃ catalysts under oxygen and hydrogen atmosphere was conducted by means of thermal gravimetric analysis/differential scanning calorimetry (TG/DSC), temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) and temperature-programmed desorption (TPD). A simultaneous TG/DSC measurement revealed that the heat evolved during oxygen adsorption at 25 °C varied slightly with the supports and had a higher value for the smaller palladium crystallite. Hydrogen chemisorption and BET measurements revealed that the coating of Pd/Al₂O₃ catalysts with titania modified the support character to achieve a high dispersion of palladium. TPR and TPD characterizations of oxidized samples further demonstrated that the coating of Pd/Al₂O₃ catalysts with titania promoted the reduction and decomposition of PdO into palladium.     

Green synthesis of methyl trifluoropyruvate catalyzed by solid acids

Solid acids – NiSO₄/Al₂O₃, Fe₂(SO₄)₃/Al₂O₃ and TiO₂/SO₄²⁻ – appeared to be effective catalysts for the acid catalyzed synthesis of methyl ester of trifluoropyruvic acid. They are active at 150–180 °C.     

载体对Ni_2P催化剂加氢脱氮反应性能的影响

使用TiO2、Al2O3以及TiO2-Al2O3复合载体考察了载体对磷化镍催化剂活性相和加氢脱氮性能的影响。不同钛铝原子比的TiO2-Al2O3复合载体采用原位-溶胶凝胶法制备,负载的磷化镍催化剂采用等体积浸渍法和H2原位还原法制备。以喹啉为模型化合物在固定床反应器上对催化剂的加氢脱氮性能进行评价,采用XRD、N2吸附、TEM和H2-TPR等技术对催化剂和载体进行了表征。结果表明,制成的复合载体基本保留了最初引入的γ-Al2O3的孔特征,分散在γ-Al2O3表面的TiO2以锐钛矿晶型存在。不同载体对催化剂的H2还原行为有显著影响,所形成的活性物种也不相同。Al2O3中引入TiO2可以减弱P物种和Al2O3之间的相互作用,有利于Ni2P活性相的生成和催化活性的提高。当Ti/Al的原子比为1∶8时,Ni2P/TiO2-Al2O3催化剂比Ni2P/TiO2、Ni2P/Al2O3催化剂具有更高的加氢脱氮活性。     

Mg(OOCCH(3))(2) as an electrolyte additive for quasi-solid dye-sensitized solar cells: with the purpose of enhancing both the photovoltage and photocurrent by modifying the TiO(2)/dye/electrolyte interfaces

The interface modification effect within quasi-solid dye-sensitized solar cells and the photovoltaic performance were investigated after the introduction of Mg(OOCCH(3))(2) as an additive into a polymer gel electrolyte. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy showed that the addition of Mg(OOCCH(3))(2) into the polymer gel electrolyte can efficiently retard charge recombination at the TiO(2)/electrolyte interface. Mg(OOCCH(3))(2) in the electrolyte can also contribute to the enhancement of the incident photon-to-electron conversion efficiency by modifying the dye molecules. This results in an improvement in the photovoltage and photocurrent due to a barrier layer at the TiO(2)/electrolyte interface and the promotion of charge injection at the dye/TiO(2) interface, respectively. Photovoltaic measurements reveal that a conversion efficiency enhancement from 4.05% to 4.96% under 100 mW cm(-2) is obtained after the amount of Mg(OOCCH(3))(2) added was optimized.     

Properties of chemical vapour deposited nanocrystalline TiO2 thin films and their use in dye-sensitized solar cells

Nanocrystalline titanium dioxide (TiO₂) thin films have been prepared using titanium(IV) isopropoxide as a precursor onto the glass and fluorine doped tin oxide coated glass substrates by chemical vapour deposition technique at 400 °C substrate temperature. X-ray diffraction study confirms the polycrystalline nature of TiO₂ with anatase phase having tetragonal crystal structure. The films are 975 nm thick and transparent having transmittance grater than 80%. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) images reveal the nanocrystalline morphology with grain size of 200 nm. The film shows a sharp absorption edge near 350 nm. Photoelectrochemical study shows that TiO₂ thin film sensitized with Brown Orange dye is found to exhibit relatively maximum I_sc and V_oc among the studied dyes. The values of fill factor (FF) and efficiency (η) for the dye-sensitized solar cell (Brown Orange dye-sensitized TiO₂) are 0.54 and 0.17%, respectively. Such films would serve as better prospects for dye-sensitized solar cells.     

TiO2/Bi2O3纳米复合体的制备及可见光催化产氢性能

首先采用相分离的水解-溶剂热法制备了Bi₂O₃纳米粒子,然后利用简单的湿化学法在Bi₂O₃表面负载不同比例的TiO₂纳米颗粒,进而得到TiO₂/Bi₂O₃纳米复合体。通过气氛调控的表面光电压谱(SPS)等测试表明,表面负载适量的TiO₂后能够提高Bi₂O₃光生电荷分离。可见光催化产氢和降解污染物测试结果进一步证明,表面负载适量的TiO₂后可显著提高其可见光催化活性,其中Ti/Bi摩尔比为7%时具有最高的光催化活性。这主要归因于TiO₂具有较为合适的导带能级位置,可以接收Bi₂O₃在可见光激发下所产生的高能级电子,从而抑制光生电子-空穴对复合,并且维持了高能级电子较高的还原能力。     

TiO_2载体掺杂对Mn-Ce/TiO_2催化剂低温脱硝性能影响研究

以TiO_2、TiO_2-Al_2O_3及TiO_2-SiO_2为载体,选取Mn为活性组分,Ce为活性助剂,采用分布共混法制备低温SCR催化剂,分析了TiO_2载体掺杂Al_2O_3、SiO_2改性后对Mn-Ce/TiO_2催化剂低温脱硝活性的影响,运用BET、SEM、XRD、H2-TPR以及NH_3-TPD等测试手段对催化剂进行了表征。结果表明,TiO_2载体经掺杂改性后,Mn-Ce/TiO_2催化剂的比表面积、孔结构参数以及表面孔结构形貌均得到改善和提高;Mn-Ce/TiO_2-Al_2O_3和Mn-Ce/TiO_2-SiO_2催化剂中TiO_2的结晶度均有不同程度降低;经TiO_2载体掺杂改性后的催化剂表面低温还原峰面积及催化剂表面酸性位种类及酸性大小显著改善,这都有助于提高催化剂的脱硝活性。通过对TiO_2载体掺杂SiO_2和Al_2O_3改性后,催化剂的脱硝活性明显提高,反应温度在80-140℃时,催化剂SCR脱硝活性的顺序是:Mn-Ce/TiO_2-SiO_2M n-Ce/TiO_2-Al_2O_3M n-Ce/TiO_2。     

The nature of the surface site for isocyanate produced in the reaction of ammonia and carbon monoxide over supported catalysts

The reaction of CO and NH₃ was performed over M/X (M=Rh, Ru, Pd; X=Al₂O₃, SiO₂, TiO₂) films. Infrared spectroscopy was used to monitor the formation of surface intermediates. Isocyanate (NCO) was detected for all of the metals when the support was Al₂O₃ or SiO₂, but not for TiO₂. The NCO resided on the Al₂O₃ support for all M/Al₂O₃ catalysts, but on the metal when the support was SiO₂. It was concluded that the formation and location of the NCO was dependent upon the extent of NH₄⁺ formation on the various supports.     

TiO_2掺杂CuMnCe/Al_2O_3催化剂对甲烷催化燃烧脱氧反应的影响

以掺杂了不同TiO_2含量的Al_2O_3作为载体,通过等体积浸渍法制备了一系列不同TiO_2含量的CuMnCe/TiO_2-Al_2O_3催化剂,用BET、H_2-TPR、XRD和XPS表征技术对催化剂物理化学性质进行表征,并考察了催化剂在含甲烷气脱氧反应中的催化性能。结果表明,在载体中添加TiO_2对催化剂活性组分的晶相结构和分散度没有明显影响;但有效改善了Al_2O_3载体抗烧结能力;增加了CuMnCe/Al_2O_3催化剂表面Ce~(3+)/(Ce~(3+)+Ce~(4+))的相对含量,从而提高了活性氧的移动性,且使催化剂表面可氧化还原物种含量和表面吸附氧Osur/(Osur+Olatt)的含量增多。有效改善了催化剂在含甲烷气催化燃烧脱氧上的催化活性。其中,CuMnCe/4%TiO_2-Al_2O_3表现出最优的催化活性,在387℃时可使含甲烷气中氧气的转化率达到100%。     

Synthesis of nano-TiO2 assisted by diethylene glycol for use in high efficiency dye-sensitized solar cells

The performance of dye-sensitized solar cells(DSSCs) consisting of anatase TiO_2 nanoparticles that were synthesized via a hydrothermal method was studied.The synthesized TiO_2 nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD),nitrogen sorption analysis,scanning electron microscopy(SEM),high resolution transmission electron microscopy(HRTEM),and UV-vis spectroscopy.Then the J-Vcurve,electrochemical impedance spectroscopy(EIS),and open-circuit voltage decay(OCVD) measurement were applied to evaluate the photovoltaic performance of DSSCs.Compared with the commercial TiO_2nanoparticles(P25),the synthesized-TiO_2 nanoparticles showed better performance.By adding diethylene glycol(DEG) before the hydrothermal process,the synthesized TiO_2 nanoparticles(hereafter referred to as TiO_2-DEG particles) shows narrower size distribution,larger specific surface area,higher crystallinity,and less surface defects than TiO_2(DEG free) particles.The analysis of photovoltaic properties of DSSCs based on TiO_2-DEG particles showed that the recombination of electron-hole pairs was decreased and the trapping of carries in grain boundaries restrained.It was believed that the photoelectrode fabricated with the as-prepared TiO_2 nanoparticles improved the loading amount of dye sensitizers(N719).and enhanced the photocurrent of the DSSCs.As a result,the TiO_2-DEG particle based cells achieved a photo-to-electricity conversion efficiency(η) of 7.90%,which is higher than 7.53%for the cell based on TiO2(DEG free) and 6.59%for the one fabricated with P25.     

用表面处理法降低TiO2粉末光活性问题的研究

本工作采用了两种简便的方法即用不同金属盐和金属氧化物对两种晶型(锐钛矿型和金虹石型)TiO₂粉末进行表面处理来降低TiO₂的光活性并对两种表面处理方法的优缺点作了比较,在评价TiO₂光活性时采用异丙醇光氧化反应的方法。实验证明,用金属盐表面处理TiO₂,其光活性有明显降低。用金属氧化物对TiO₂进行表面处理,在氧化物/TiO₂比例适当时也可以得到与金属盐表面处理TiO₂的同样效果。此外,我们还对TiO₂表面处理后能降低其光活性的作用机制问题进行了讨论。     

Significant efficiency improvement of the black dye-sensitized solar cell through protonation of TiO2 films

This paper describes the influence of acid pretreatment ofTiO2 mesoporous films prior to dye sensitization on the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells based on [(C4H9)4N]3[Ru(Htcterpy)(NCS)3] (tcterpy = 4,4',4"-tricarboxy- 2,2',2"-terpyridine), the so-called black dye. The HCl pretreatment caused an increase in overall efficiency by 8%, with a major contribution from photocurrent improvement. It is speculated, from the analysis of incident photon-to-electron conversion efficiency, UV-vis absorption spectra, redox properties of the dye and TiO2, and the impedance spectra of the dye-sensitized solar cells, that photocurrent enhancement is attributed to the increases in electron injection and/or charge collection efficiency besides the improvement of light harvesting efficiency upon HCl pretreatment. Open-circuit photovoltage (V(oc)) remained almost unchanged in the case of significant positive shift of flat band potential for TiO2 upon HCl pretreatment. The suppression of electron transfer from conduction band electrons to the I3- ions in the electrolyte upon HCl pretreatment, reflected by the increased resistance at the TiO2/dye/electrolyte interface and reduced dark current, resulted in a V(oc) gain, which compensated the V(oc) loss due to the positive shift of the flat band. Using the HCl pretreatment approach, 10.5% of overall efficiency with the black dye was obtained under illumination of simulated AM 1.5 solar light (100 mW cm(-2)) using an antireflection film on the cell surface.     

不同受体结构染料共敏化对染料敏化太阳电池性能的影响

为了拓宽染料敏化太阳电池对太阳光谱的响应范围,提高电池的光电转换效率,将两种含有不同受体结构（绕丹宁-3-乙酸基（RA）和氰基丙烯酸基（CA））的三苯胺染料（TR1和TC1）进行共敏化。TR1染料平伏吸附在TiO₂表面,而TC1染料直立吸附在TiO₂表面。将两种染料按照不同摩尔比共敏化TiO₂后,TC1占据TR1的部分位置,拓展光谱的同时也抑制了电荷复合,电子寿命较TR1敏化的太阳电池长。在TR1与TC1摩尔比为5：5的共敏剂溶液敏化的共敏电池器件中,短路光电流密度（J_sc）为11.7 mA/cm²,开路电压（V_oc）为704 mV,填充因子（FF）为0.73,光电转换效率（η）为6.03%。该结果明显优于单一染料敏化的电池器件。     

灰中酸性成分对灰熔融温度的影响

搜集并统计了世界129种典型煤种、城市污水污泥及污泥/煤混烧灰样的灰成分及灰熔融特征温度等相关数据,研究灰中酸性成分SiO2、Al2O3、TiO2和P2O5对灰熔融特性的影响。结果表明,Al2O3是决定灰熔点的主要因素,酸性金属氧化物SiO2、Al2O3和TiO2形成的耐熔矿物质石英、偏高岭石、莫来石、金红石等可提高灰熔点。非金属氧化物P2O5与污泥和污泥/煤的灰熔点FT二次拟合很好且明显降低熔点,污泥灰中P2O5含量显著高于煤灰是导致其熔点明显低于煤的重要原因。