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A solar-responsive zinc oxide photoanode for solar-photon-harvester photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells.

ABSTRACT: A highly efficient, nanostructured, solar-responsive zinc-oxide (SRZO) photoanode has been achieved by utilization of a versatile solution precursor plasma spray (SPPS) deposition technique. For the first time, it is demonstrated that a front-illumination type SRZO photo-anode fabricated with a ZnO/stainless steel (SS-304) configuration can generate an enhanced photo-electrochemical (PEC) current of 390 μA cm^-2, under solar radiation from a solar simulator with an AM1.5 global filter (∼1 sun). The SRZO electrode displayed a solar-to-hydrogen (STH) conversion efficiency of 2.32% when investigated for H₂ evolution in a PEC cell. These electrodes exhibited a maximum peak efficiency of 86% using 320 nm photons during incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency measurement. Interestingly, the film lattice of SRZO showed a significant red-shift of 0.37 eV in the ZnO band gap thereby providing solar photon absorptivity to SRZO. Further, an enhanced charge transport property by virtue of increased donor density (∼4.11 × 10¹⁷ cm^-3) has been observed, which is higher by an order of magnitude than that of its bulk counterpart. Efficient optical absorption of solar photons and higher donor-density of SRZO have been thus attributed to its superior PEC performance.

SUBMITTER: Dom R

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9417454 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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A solar-responsive zinc oxide photoanode for solar-photon-harvester photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells.

Dom Rekha R Govindarajan Sivakumar S Joshi Shrikant V SV Borse Pramod H PH

Nanoscale advances 20200608 8

A highly efficient, nanostructured, solar-responsive zinc-oxide (SRZO) photoanode has been achieved by utilization of a versatile solution precursor plasma spray (SPPS) deposition technique. For the first time, it is demonstrated that a front-illumination type SRZO photo-anode fabricated with a ZnO/stainless steel (SS-304) configuration can generate an enhanced photo-electrochemical (PEC) current of 390 μA cm<sup>-2</sup>, under solar radiation from a solar simulator with an AM1.5 global filter ...[more]

PMID: 36134295

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Project description:The dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) is a potential alternative to the widely used Si-based solar cell, with several advantages including higher energy conversion efficiency under weak and indirect illumination conditions, and the possibility of practical application in urban life due to their exterior characteristics. However, despite these advantages, the energy conversion efficiency of DSSCs has remained low at ∼10%. To improve the efficiency of DSSCs, research has been done on modifying the materials used in DSSC component parts, such as the photoanode, electrolyte, and counter electrode. Another approach is to modify the photoanode to increase the diffusion coefficient, reduce the recombination rate, and enhance the light behavior. One of the most popular methods for improving the efficiency of DSSCs is by trapping and dispersing the incident light using a scattering layer. Use of a scattering layer has shown various and interesting results, depending on the application, but it is currently used only in a simple form and there has been no deep research on the further potential of the scattering layer. In this study, the scattering center was introduced to maximize the effect of scattering. Light distribution near the scattering center, within or on the photoanode, was investigated using finite differential time domain (FDTD) numerical methods. Based on the FDTD analysis, an optimized, dome-shaped three-dimensional modified structure of a transparent photoanode with minimized scattering centers was introduced and indicated the possibility of modifying the photon distribution in the photoanode to enhance the performance of DSSCs. In addition to using the scattering center, we have introduced the structure of the dome-shaped three-dimensional structure to utilize the light distribution within the photoanode. This novel three-dimensional transparent photoanode and scattering center design increased the energy conversion efficiency of DSSCs from 6.3 to 7.2%. These results provide a foundation for investigating the role of the scattering center via further in-depth research. This new three-dimensional photoanode design provides a means to overcome the previous limitations on DSSC performance.

Dataset Information

A solar-responsive zinc oxide photoanode for solar-photon-harvester photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells.

Publications

A solar-responsive zinc oxide photoanode for solar-photon-harvester photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells.

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