FABRICATION OF TIO2 P 25 AEROXIDE FILM WITHOUT BINDING AGENT AS PHOTOANODE FOR DYE-SENSITIZE SOLAR CELL APPLICATIONS

• Main Author: LESMANA HIDAYAT PUTRA, KEMAL
• Format: Theses
• Language: Indonesia
• Subjects: Kimia
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/70422
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

One of the research topics currently being developed in the field of non-silicon solar cells is dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). DSSC has various advantages compared to other silicon-based solar cell devices, i.e., low production costs, simple fabrication procedures, and environmentally friendly processes. Given Indonesia’s location on the equator, which is exposed to sunlight all year round, the development of DSSC devices is very important. DSSC consists of four main components: photoanode, sensitizing agent, electrolyte, and counter electrode. The material commonly used as a photoanode in DSSC is TiO2. This is due to its low price, environmental friendliness, and the 3.2 eV band gap energy of the anatase phase, so it has the potential to be a good DSSC material. One of the commercially used TiO2 photoanode in DSSC is TiO2 P 25 aeroxide. However, the general TiO2 P 25 aeroxide film fabrication technique still has drawbacks, one of which is the use of a binding agent. The process of removing binding agents in the form of organic compounds requires high heating temperatures. If the heating process is carried out at low temperatures, many binding agents will still be left in the TiO2 film. The presence of residual binding agents on the TiO2 film can inhibit the flow rate of electrons, lessen the lifetime of the photoelectrons, and reduce the surface area. In addition, heating at high temperatures also precludes the use of conductive transparent pliable substrates, namely ITO film-coated PET (PET/ITO) plastic. This study aims to make a TiO2 P 25 aeroxide film as a photoanode using a flexible PET/ITO substrate with a low-temperature heating technique. In this study, ammonium hydroxide/ethanol solution was used as an alternative binding agent in the manufacture of TiO2 paste, which can be removed at low-temperature heating. The conventional screen print method is still used in DSSC fabrication because it is a very cheap and easy technique. Additionally, a hot-pressing method is also used to improve the quality of TiO2 films. The encapsulation technique used in the assembly of DSSC is expected to increase the performance of flexible DSSC, as well as increase the technology readiness level (TRL) from TRL 3 to TRL 4. The use of ammonium hydroxide and ethanol solutions can produce a slurry in the manufacture of TiO2 paste, which can produce TiO2 films that are well deposited on PET/ITO substrates. The resulting TiO2 film gave the highest DSSC performance at a heating temperature of 120 oC. The encapsulation technique was observed to provide increased performance and stability to DSSC devices. The encapsulation technique on the DSSC device has increased the technology readiness level of the DSSC prototype from TRL 3 to TRL 4.