Poly(vinylidene fluoride)-implanted cobalt-platinum alloy counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Exploration of cost-effective counter electrodes (CEs) with simple technique for large-scale synthesis has been a persistent objective for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). In the current work, binary cobalt-platinum (Co-Pt) alloys are synthesized by a mild solution method and implanted into poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) for coating cost-effective CEs. Owing to the excellent adhesiveness of PVDF, Co-Pt alloys are solidly attached on conductive glass substrate. The electrical conduction ability and electrochemical behavior of interconnected Co-Pt channels demonstrate the potential use of PVDF-implanted Co-Pt alloy CE in robust DSSCs. The electrochemical properties as well as photovoltaic performances are optimized by adjusting stoichiometric ratios of Co/Pt. An optimal power conversion efficiency of 7.61% is recorded from DSSC employing PVDF-implanted Co2Pt alloy CE, which is better than 6.02% from expensive Pt CE or 1.45% from PVDF-implanted Co-CE based DSSC. Relatively stabilities in photocurrent and multiple start/stop cycles are determined for the cell with PVDF-implanted Co-Pt alloy CE. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.