Affiliations 

  • 1 Department of Biology, College of Education for Pure Sciences/Ibn Al-Haitham, University of Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq. Electronic address: mamash73@yahoo.com
  • 2 Solar Energy Research Institute, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi 43600, Selangor, Malaysia
  • 3 Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi 43600, Selangor, Malaysia
  • 4 Department of Biology, Madenat Al Elam University College, Al Tajy, Baghdad, Iraq
Spectrochim Acta A Mol Biomol Spectrosc, 2018 Mar 05;192:487-498.
PMID: 29133132 DOI: 10.1016/j.saa.2017.11.018

Abstract

The natural dyes anthocyanin and chlorophyll were extracted from Musa acuminata bracts and Alternanthera dentata leaves, respectively. The dyes were then applied as sensitizers in TiO2-based dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The ethanol extracts of the dyes had maximum absorbance. High dye yields were obtained under extraction temperatures of 70 to 80°C, and the optimal extraction temperature was approximately 80°C. Moreover, dye concentration sharply decreased under extraction temperatures that exceeded 80°C. High dye concentrations were obtained using acidic extraction solutions, particularly those with a pH value of 4. The DSSC fabricated with anthocyanin from M. acuminata bracts had a conversion efficiency of 0.31%, short-circuit current (Isc) of 0.9mA/cm2, open-circuit voltage (Voc) of 0.58V, and fill factor (FF) of 62.22%. The DSSC sensitized with chlorophyll from A. dentata leaves had a conversion efficiency of 0.13%, Isc of 0.4mA/cm-2,Voc of 0.54V, and FF of 67.5%. The DSSC sensitized with anthocyanin from M. acuminata bracts had a maximum incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency of 42%, which was higher than that of the DSSC sensitized with chlorophyll from A. dentata leaves (23%). Anthocyanin from M. acuminata bracts exhibited the best photosensitization effects.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.