Application of Covalent Organic Frameworks (COFs) as Dyes and Additives for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs)

Diogo Inácio; Ana Lucia Pinto; Ana B Paninho; Luis C Branco; Sunny K S Freitas; Hugo Cruz

doi:10.3390/nano13071204

Application of Covalent Organic Frameworks (COFs) as Dyes and Additives for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs)

Nanomaterials (Basel). 2023 Mar 28;13(7):1204. doi: 10.3390/nano13071204.

Authors

Diogo Inácio¹, Ana Lucia Pinto¹, Ana B Paninho¹, Luis C Branco¹, Sunny K S Freitas^{1

2}, Hugo Cruz¹

Affiliations

¹ LAQV-REQUIMTE, Department of Chemistry, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University of Lisbon, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal.
² Instituto de Química-UFRJ Avenida Athos da Silveira Ramos, n° 149, Bloco A-7° Andar Centro de Tecnologia-Cidade Universitária, Ilha do Fundão, Rio de Janeiro 21941-909, Brazil.

Abstract

Five Covalent Organic Frameworks (COFs) were synthesized and applied to Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs) as dyes and additives. These porous nanomaterials are based on cheap, abundant commercially available ionic dyes (thionin acetate RIO-43, Bismarck brown Y RIO-55 and pararosaniline hydrochloride RIO-70), and antibiotics (dapsone RIO-60) are used as building blocks. The reticular innovative organic framework RIO-60 is the most promising dye for DSSCs. It possesses a short-circuit current density (J_sc) of 1.00 mA/cm², an open-circuit voltage (V_oc) of 329 mV, a fill factor (FF) of 0.59, and a cell efficiency (η) of 0.19%. These values are higher than those previously reported for COFs in similar devices. This first approach using the RIO family provides a good perspective on its application in DSSCs as a dye or photoanode dye enhancer, helping to increase the cell's lifespan.

Keywords: COVALENT Organic Frameworks (COFs); additive; dye; dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC); photoanode.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Associate Laboratory for Green Chemistry-LAQV (UID/QUI/50006/2019)), the projects PTDC/QUI-QOR/7450/2020 (“Organic Redox Mediators for Energy Conversion”) and MIT-EXPL/CS/0055/2021 with funding by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia I. P.-FCT.