ZIF-67 Derived Nanostructures of Co/CoO and Co@N-doped Graphitic Carbon as Counter Electrode for Highly Efficient Dye-sensitized Solar Cells. (20th September 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jing, Hongyu; Song, Xuedan; Ren, Suzhen; Shi, Yantao; An, Yonglin; Yang, Ying; Feng, Mingqiao; Ma, Shaobo; Hao, Ce
• Is Part Of: Electrochimica acta. Volume 213(2016)
• Page Start: 252
• Page End: 259
• Publication Date: 2016-09-20
• Subjects: Dye-sensitized solar cells -- Counter electrode -- ZIF-67 derived catalysts -- One-step carbonization -- Photovoltaic performance; Electrochemistry -- Periodicals; Electrochemistry, Industrial -- Periodicals; 541.37
• DOI: 10.1016/j.electacta.2016.07.129
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0013-4686

Abstract

Abstract: In this work, a facile one-step approach is reported for using ZIF-67 as a sacrificial template in the synthesis of a counter electrode (CE) catalyst for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs). Porous nanocomposites of Co, CoO and N-doped graphitic carbon were synthesized by controlling the carbonization temperature of the templates in a N2 atmosphere. The characterization of the structure of the products indicated that cobalt nanoparticles were embedded in an N-doped graphitic carbon matrix, (a core-shell structure termed Co@NGC) while cobalt and cobalt oxide nanoparticles were exposed on the external surface of the carbon (termed Co/CoO). In particular, the chemical stability of the nanostructure of the Co@NGC was superior to Co/CoO with respect to etching by strong acids such as hydrochloric acid (HCl, 0.1 M). The DSC performance of ZIF-67-850 (pyrolyzed at 850 °C) employed as a CE resulted in a photoelectric conversion efficiency (PCE) of 7.92%, which was close to a Pt CE (8.18%) in the liquid I3 − /I − redox couple electrolyte. The excellent performance of ZIF-67-850 can be attributed to the synergetic effects between the Co and CoO coupled with the nitrogen doped graphitic carbon. The cost-effective porous Co/CoO and Co@NGC nanocomposites exhibit great potential for application as high performance CE in solar cells.