One-pot fabrication of mesoporous g-C3N4/NiS co-catalyst counter electrodes for quantum-dot-sensitized solar cells

• Published in: Journal of materials science Vol. 55; no. 24; pp. 10712 - 10724
• Main Authors: Li, Wenhua, Chen, Qianqiao, Zhong, Qin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.08.2020; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Architecture; Carbon nitride; Catalysis; Catalysts; Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Charge transfer; Chemistry and Materials Science; Classical Mechanics; Crystallography and Scattering Methods; Electrodes; Electrolytes; Electrolytic cells; Energy conversion efficiency; Energy Materials; Materials Science; Morphology; Nanoparticles; Nickel sulfide; Photovoltaic cells; Polymer Sciences; Pore formation; Quantum dots; Raw materials; Solar cells; Solid Mechanics; Sulfur; Titanium dioxide
• ISSN: 0022-2461; 1573-4803
• DOI: 10.1007/s10853-020-04672-w

The nickel sulfide (NiS) nanoparticles were anchored on the mesoporous graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ) by one-pot calcination with sulfur powder as sulfur source and pore-forming agent. It is the first attempt to use the g-C 3 N 4 /NiS as a counter electrode (CE) for quantum-dot-sensitized solar cells. The g-C 3 N 4 /NiS co-catalyst based on 0.74 wt% NiS loading for S n 2− reduction obtained a low interface charge transfer resistance ( R ct ) of 1.08 Ω. The power conversion efficiency of the QDSSC assembled with ZnSe/CdS/CdSe/ZnSe-sensitized TiO 2 photoanode and g-C 3 N 4 /NiS CE is up to 5.64%, which is 3.05 times as high as that of pure g-C 3 N 4 CE. The enhancement of cell efficiency is attributed to the synergistic effects of excellent morphology of g-C 3 N 4 and its co-catalysis with NiS nanoparticles. The mesoporous architecture contributes a large specific surface area and fast electrolyte transfer channels, and the coupling of g-C 3 N 4 with NiS promotes the transfer of charge between the interface g-C 3 N 4 /NiS and electrolytes. The presented strategy for fabricating mesoporous architecture with g-C 3 N 4 /NiS uses low-cost raw materials and a simple preparation method, which provides a feasible route to enhance the electrocatalytic activity of g-C 3 N 4 .