A Simple Low Pressure Method for the Synthesis of TiO2 Nanotubes and Nanofibers and Their Application in DSSCs

TiO2 nanotubes were synthesized using a modified autoclave-free thermal method from as-prepared initial powders. The size of initial powders (IP) was found to be critical in determining the morphology and crystal structure of the final product. Oleylamine (OA) was used as the polymer agent in the preparation of initial powders with different mol ratios of OA/Ti: 1, 5, and 10. X-ray diffraction analysis depicted that the increase of mole ratio up to 10 resulted in smaller nanoparticles with the sizes of about 8 nm. It was also deliberated that low temperature thermally treated IP showed the characteristic diffraction pattern of titanate phase of nanotubes. Scanning electron microscope images showed nanorods, short nanotubes, and single-phase long and uniform nanofibers produced from initial powders. SEM cross-section of the anode cell of TiO2 nanofibers demonstrated the presence of uniformly closed net long fibers in the cell. Open circuit voltage measurements of the nanofiber cell demonstrated a several hundreds of seconds in the electron transport decay, which was significantly higher than that of the nanoparticles. IMPS/IMVS measurements of the nanofibers and nanotube solar cells showed electron transport enhancement and long life time compared to their nanoparticle counterparts.