Dye stability and performances of dye-sensitized solar cells with different nitrogen additives at elevated temperatures—Can sterically hindered pyridines prevent dye degradation?

Abstract The homogeneous kinetics of the nucleophilic substitution reactions between the ruthenium dye N719 and eight pyridines and 1-methylbenzimidazole have been investigated in 3-methoxypropionitrile at 100 °C. The half lives of N719 with the additives 4-tert-butylpyridine (0.5 M) and 1-methylbenzimidazole (0.5 M) were 57 and 160 h, respectively. Sterically hindered pyridines like 2,6-lutidine did not react with N719. The efficiencies of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSC, area=8.0 cm2) prepared with 1-methylbenzimidazole (MBI), 4-tert-butylpyridine (4-TBP), 2,6-lutidine and without any additive were 7.1%, 6.2%, 6.0% and 4.8%, respectively. The cells were stored in dark at 85 °C and their I–V curves and impedance spectra were measured at regular time intervals. The N719 dye degradation in the cells were monitored by a new dye extraction protocol combined with analysis of the dye extract by HPLC coupled to mass spectrometry. After 300 h storage in dark at 85 °C 40% of the initial amount of N719 dye was degraded in DSC cells prepared with MBI and the efficiency was decreased to 40% of its initial value. DSC cells prepared with 2,6-lutidine or no additives showed smaller thermal dye and efficiency stability at elevated temperatures than DSC cells prepared with the none sterically hindered additives MBI and 4-TBP. In the cells prepared with 2,6-lutidine or no additive higher contents of the iodo products [RuL2(NCS)(iodide)]+ and [RuL2(3-MPN)(iodide)]+ were found than in cells prepared with 4-TBP and MBI. It is suggested that sterically hindered pyridines have smaller complexation constants with I 3 − than unsterically hindered additives. This may explain the observed faster nucleophilic substitution rates of uncomplexed I 3 − with N719 in DSC cells prepared with sterically hindered pyridines. The EIS analysis showed that the lifetime of the injected electrons in the TiO2 τeff is reduced by a thermally induced change in the TiO2|dye|electrolyte interface.