Low temperature preparation of TiO2 nanoparticle chains without hydrothermal treatment for highly efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

Abstract

Nanoparticle chains of anatase TiO₂ composed of ∼5 nm nanoparticles with a high surface area (309 m² g⁻¹) are prepared by slow hydrolysis of titanium tetraisopropoxide modified with glacial acetic acid at a temperature of 50 °C. These nanoparticle chains without hydrothermal treatment can be used directly to fabricate photoanodes for highly efficient dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), which achieve a power conversion efficiency of 9.80% at simulated AM1.5 G illumination (100 mW cm⁻²). The approach presented in this study demonstrates a facile synthesis of anatase TiO₂ chains for use in DSSCs, which avoid hazards arising from a hydrothermal process that is typically adopted to prepare crystalline TiO₂ nanoparticles for use as the photoanode in DSSCs.