Great Video.....I have been studying this stuffs in Silico for a year now , but I didnt have teh chance to see a real working DSSC so far...this video made it easier for me to see a real example ...Thanks
@kam03m: the titania layer, which is titanium dioxide, the stuff in sunscreen, has enough thickness to separate the glass plates from each-other. On a different note, the anthocyanin dyes absorb light energy and transfer it to the titania semiconductor layer, which then transfers it to the indium-tin oxide glass and to the rest of the circuit. The electrons return to the cathode, where they combine with the carbon graphite, which is oxidized and then reduced by the triiodide electrolyte. Just a
Hi Neal, Thanks for the informative video. If I want to conduct more than one trial for this experiment, will I be able to reuse the TiO2 covered tin oxide glass for the next trials, or will I have to use a new piece of glass?
Hi, I think you need a new one since the dye from the fruit is already with the TiO2. But also, if you have done the project, did you use non-nano TiO2, or nano TiO2 P25? Or no P25? Thanks!
You'd probably have to find a reseller for the glass. It is made by Pilkington in the US and Asahi in Japan in large quantities. We get it from a small company called Hartford Glass in Indiana, US.
If the TiO2 is not sticking when heated, it is most likely due to the paste being too thick. If it flakes BEFORE being heated (but after drying) it is due to the paste being too thin.
The resistance on the wrong side should be infinite meaning there is an infinitely high resistance to electron flow. If the ITO glass is high quality, there is no contact resistance, or the multimeter is not very precise, than you will observe 0 Ohms rather than 20-30.
@frostvectron Volume ratio is defined by molarity. I would suggest obtaining the compounds individually, then making the solution. The triiodide complex is in ethylene glycol, not water. Water will kill the cell. You need about ONE DROP of solution per cell.
wow this video is so good, thanks guys, but as i did with the other video you had uploaded before , i have the same question here too, please ,the titaniun doixide layer won't stick to the glas when i heat it up , can you help me please, it is a heatproblem or do i have a too think layer?
@manilaenglish Votlage is based on the cell (max around 500 mv). If you want to increase voltage, you need to wire in series. I would not make the cells larger than 25mm x 25 mm. After that, the current drops. Cost: I don't know on a per cell basis.
Hi, great experiment! Thank you for this. Could you provide me the concentration of Nitric Acid and the redox electrolite? iodine and KI? I really aprreciate it
@frostvectron I would suggest chemistry labs or chemical suppliers. Iodine is hard to get a hold of these days. You can also buy the whole DSSC kit from the Institute for Chemical Education.
Ok, so the excited electrons are injected into the conduction band of the Ti02 then they move towards the black alligator clip because of the electrical field created by the depletion region in the electrolyte. They are suppose to travel through the multimeter then recombine with the electrolyte completing the circuit. But since the both conducting sides of the glass are touching each other why doesn't the electron follow the path of least resistance and jump directly to the cathode?
What would you estimate the $ / Watt to be with this type of cell? Also, will this same method / procedure work with larger pieces of conductive glass (1-2 feet square vs 1 inch square)?
I would think aluminum foil could be the layer with titanium oxide added to it since it is conductive and has no need to transmit light. The conductive glass as a bottom layer is silly since it becomes opaque to sunlight once it is coated.
@onlyjustice04 The resistance should be close to 0 ohm. Certainly not infinite, which is the other option. Yes, the cell needs to be sintered. If it is flaking/peeling even after sintering, I would guess that the paste was too thick.
Thank you for the video. Do you have a detailed video about how to make a solid-state Dye sensitized solar cell? If not can you make one? Thank you in advance.
I would not expect the cell to dry out since the redox electrolyte is made using ethylene glycol. Instead, I would think the anthocyanin dyes oxidized, turning the cell a brownish color. If it turned completely white, either the redox electrolyte was not correct or the cell was exposed to a large amount of heat and UV light.
Titanium dioxide (titania) w/small amts of nitric acid for mixing fluorine-droped tin oxide glass berry juice (raspberry or blackberry) redox electrolyte (iodine, potassium iodide, ethylene glycol) Scotch tape for making borders
can the TCO glass that have been heated with titania paste be used again for another try of pigment sticking? Or in another words, can the TCO glass be used again if the first try is failed?
plz help me out :-( ..no working on my cell...can i get a result if i use eggplant,red grapes,Red Spinach...how can i prepare appropriate electrolyte solution??? & any difference has between titania & titanium di oxide??? plz reply me asap ..plzz
@nabrams1 I am looking at Sigma Aldrich for the ingredients for the electrolyte solution. They have KI and iodine solutions in water in the concentrations you had specified. What was the volume ratio of 0.5M KI, 0.05M Iodine, and EG that was used? Thanks again!
+Olof Enström There should be a space to avoid a short circuit. In our research we are using a carbon disk from Floppy Disk or simple transparent tape.
Can anybody tell me if these cells will continue to work in the long term? I'm looking to make one of these on a larger scale to power a small fish tank, and I need to be sure that it will hold up for months at a time. If they don't last, is there any way to extend their lifetime?
Yes, there are ways to extend the lifetime of cells (most likely by creating a fully enclosed DSSC), but the cell made by this person will not produce the same output for very long because the dye on the titanium(IV) oxide will decompose when not supplied with an electron by the iodine solution. The iodide solution can evaporate and cause the electrons to not reach the dye molecules at the same initial pace.
Did you try blackberry, blueberries, or raspberries? Apparently they are the ones with anthocyanins which are really good at transferring electrons from the Iodide to the TiO2. Green leaves should do something but may not have have as great of an effect. I heard strawberries just don't work for some reason.
+Chuck Faber Thanks for The reply! I actually tried again with mulberries, eggplant, strawberry, spinach with carbon coating instead of titanium and different titanium dioxide. And it worked! somehow, eggplant and spinach somehow generated quite a lot of electricity, but mulberry obviously had the most
