Ionic Liquid Electrolytes for Flexible Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells.

摘要

In developing multifunctional robotic platforms, there has been an increasing need to extend the effective runtime of these units to give them more practical battlefield applications. Therefore, robust power solutions, which may be incorporated into any structural system, need to be realized. Solar energy is an abundant renewable resource capable of meeting the power requirements for a wide range of robotic vehicles. Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have recently become a competitive photovoltaic technology due to their low manufacturing cost and relatively high efficiency. However, the liquid electrolyte commonly employed in DSSCs limits the potential for flexible cells manufactured using reel-to-reel printing methods. Furthermore, these liquid electrolytes must be hermetically sealed to operate properly and prevent off- gassing of volatile organic compounds. Herein we present a study of nonvolatile room temperature ionic liquid electrolytes and their resulting performance in flexible DSSCs.