Investigation of PEO-imidazole ionic liquid oligomer electrolytes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Ionic liquid oligomers prepared by incorporating imidazolium ionic liquid with PEO oligomers were investigated as electrolytes for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The influences of PEO molecular weight and imidazolium group of the ionic liquid oligomers on the ionic conductivity, apparent diffusion coefficient of the redox species in the electrolytes and the performance of solar cells were examined. The structural effects of the ionic liquid oligomers on the kinetic behaviors of dye regeneration and triiodide reduction reactions taken place at nanocrystalline TiO2 electrode and Pt counter-electrode, respectively, were further studied by cyclic-voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements. The increase of the PEO molecular weight of the ionic liquid oligomers results in the faster dye regeneration rate and lower charge transfer resistance of triiodide reduction leading to the improvement of cell performance effectively.