Effects of annealing temperature on TiO2 photoelectrodes of dye-sensitized solar cells using Ixora coccenia dye extract

Ixora coccinea flower was utilized as source of natural dye to fabricate dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) using TiO2 electrodes. The electrodes were fabricated using Doctor Blade’s method and annealed at 600 °C, 450 °C, and 300 °C. The structural, morphological, and elemental composition analyses of the TiO2 electrodes were carried out. The dye extract and the TiO2 electrodes had low absorbance within the visible region of electromagnetic spectrum. The TiO2 photoanode annealed at 300 °C, 450 °C, and 600 °C had crystallite sizes of 26.52, 24.36, and 21.85 nm and average grain sizes of 85 nm, 169 nm, and 184 nm in that order. The DSSC fabricated based on the Ixora coccinea flower dye extract revealed conversion efficiency of 0.73%, 1.18%, and 1.01% for the TiO2 electrodes annealed at 300 °C, 450 °C, and 600 °C respectively.