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Optimization of the Performance of Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells Based on Pt‐Like TiC Counter Electrodes
Author(s) -
Wang Yudi,
Wu Mingxing,
Lin Xiao,
Hagfeldt Anders,
Ma Tingli
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
european journal of inorganic chemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.667
H-Index - 136
eISSN - 1099-0682
pISSN - 1434-1948
DOI - 10.1002/ejic.201200329
Subject(s) - triiodide , tafel equation , dye sensitized solar cell , chemistry , cyclic voltammetry , dielectric spectroscopy , auxiliary electrode , energy conversion efficiency , electrode , catalysis , polarization (electrochemistry) , electrochemistry , titanium , chemical engineering , analytical chemistry (journal) , inorganic chemistry , optoelectronics , materials science , electrolyte , organic chemistry , engineering
Titanium carbide (TiC) has been used as a counter electrode (CE) catalyst in place of Pt for triiodide reduction in dye‐sensitized solar cells (DSCs). Its catalytic activity can be comparable to that of Pt. The effect of the thickness of the TiC layer on the performance of the DSCs was investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), cyclic voltammetry (CV), and Tafel polarization measurements. We found that as the film thickness increased, the fill factor and short‐circuit current density increased, which led to improved power‐conversion efficiency. When the TiC film was thicker than 20 μm, however, no significant continuous improvement in the catalytic activity was observed. A high power‐conversion efficiency of 6.46 % was obtained for the DSC by using a TiC CE at the optimized film thickness, a value similar to that obtained with a Pt CE.