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Well-dispersed PEDOT:PSS/graphene nanocomposites synthesized by in situ polymerization as counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

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Abstract

Preparation of graphene composite material suitable for drop-coating on FTO conductive glasses in ambient conditions is reported. Highly dispersed PEDOT:PSS/graphene composites were synthesized by in situ polymerization of 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) using aqueous graphene dispersions as a precursor without the need for further reducing steps. The structural properties of the PEDOT:PSS/graphene were investigated by transmission electron microscope and FT-IR spectrometry. Graphene sheets as the support material likely provided increased active sites for the polymerization of EDOT. The graphene sheets were homogeneously coated by PEDOT:PSS. Drop-coating the solution of PEDOT:PSS/graphene nanocomposites onto FTO glass yielded graphene composite counter electrodes (CEs) useful for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Both in cyclic voltammetry measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, the composite CEs exhibited good catalytic activity. The DSSCs based on PEDOT:PSS/graphene CEs showed a conversion efficiency of 4.66 %, comparable to platinum CE-based cells which showed a conversion efficiency of 5.94 %.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Ph.D. Programs Foundation of Ministry of Education of China (Grant no. 20114208110004), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant nos. 51102087 and 21402045). This work was also financially supported by the Program for Middle-aged and Young Talents from Educational Commission of Hubei Province (Grant no. Q20120103), Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province of China (Grant no. 2014CFB167), and Wuhan Science and Technology Bureau of Hubei Province of China (Grant no. 2013010501010140).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Hubei Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials, Key Laboratory for the Green Preparation and Application of Functional Materials, Ministry of Education, Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Hubei University, Wuhan, 430062, China

    Li Wan, Bi Wang, Shimin Wang, Xianbao Wang, Zhiguang Guo, Binghai Dong, Li Zhao, Jing Li, Qiuping Zhang & Tianyue Luo

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  1. Li Wan
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  2. Bi Wang
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  3. Shimin Wang
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  7. Li Zhao
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Correspondence to Shimin Wang.

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Wan, L., Wang, B., Wang, S. et al. Well-dispersed PEDOT:PSS/graphene nanocomposites synthesized by in situ polymerization as counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells. J Mater Sci 50, 2148–2157 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-014-8777-z

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