Synthesis of titanium dioxide/reduced graphene oxide nanocomposite by ultrasound-assisted mechanical mixing method for fabricating photoanode to upgrade the performance and stability of dye-sensitized solar cell

Herein, titanium dioxide/reduced graphene oxide (TiO2/rGO - TG) nanocomposite was synthesized via the ultrasound-assisted mechanical mixing method, used for the fabrication of photoanode in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The DSSCs performance was evaluated by current density-voltage (J-V) curves and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), showing that the sample with 1.0 wt.% rGO under the ultrasonic power of 720 W, was an optimal material for fabricating photoanode in DSSCs, which obtained the power conversion efficiency of 6.37%. Additionally, in the 500-h illumination test under 300-watt metal-halide lamp and the 100-h drying at 85 C, DSSCs with the presence of rGO proved better stability in comparison with DSSCs fabricated from commercial TiO2. The characterization of TG was analyzed by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, indicating that TiO(2 )nanoparticles are uniformly distributed onto the rGO sheets with the average diameter from 20 to 70 nm.