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Dye-sensitized Ti[O.sub.2] solar cells were fabricated using tridentate ligand ruthenium(II) complexes, [Ru(dcbpy)(tptz)X]X (where dcbpy = 4,4'-dicarboxy-2, 2'-bipyridine, tptz = 2,4,6-Tris(2-pyridyl)-s-triazine and X = [Cl.sup.-], SC[N.sup.-], C[N.sup.-]) attached to sol-gel processed Ti[O.sub.2] electrodes. The ligand tptz functions as spectator ligand and dcbpy functions as the anchoring ligand with sufficient visible light absorption. The synthesized complexes were characterized before using them in solar cells. The functioning of the solar cells fabricated using different conducting glasses was monitored and the current-voltage characteristics were measured. The efficiencies of different cells were calculated and compared. Keywords: Ru; Triazine; Semiconductor; Conducting glasses; Ti[O.sub.2] solar cells

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2005.01.006 Byline: S. Anandan, S. Latha, S. Murugesan, J. Madhavan, B. Muthuraaman, P. Maruthamuthu Keywords: Ru; Triazine; Semiconductor; Conducting glasses; TiO.sub.2 solar cells Abstract: Dye-sensitized TiO.sub.2 solar cells were fabricated using tridentate ligand ruthenium(II) complexes, [Ru(dcbpy)(tptz)X]X (where dcbpy=4,4'-dicarboxy-2,2'-bipyridine, tptz=2,4,6-Tris(2-pyridyl)-s-triazine and X=Cl.sup.-, SCN.sup.-, CN.sup.-) attached to sol-gel processed TiO.sub.2 electrodes. The ligand tptz functions as spectator ligand and dcbpy functions as the anchoring ligand with sufficient visible light absorption. The synthesized complexes were characterized before using them in solar cells. The functioning of the solar cells fabricated using different conducting glasses was monitored and the current-voltage characteristics were measured. The efficiencies of different cells were calculated and compared. Author Affiliation: Department of Energy [Chemistry-Interdisciplinary], University of Madras, Guindy Campus, Chennai 600025, India Article History: Received 12 May 2004; Revised 9 November 2004; Accepted 12 January 2005 Article Note: (miscellaneous) Communicated by: Associate Editor Arturo Morales-Acevedo

Visible-light-driven photo-fenton-like catalytic activity and photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of nitrogen-doped brownmillerite KBiFe2O5 (KBFO) are investigated. The effective optical bandgap of KBFO reduces from 1.67 to 1.60 eV post N-doping, enabling both enhancement of visible light absorption and photoactivity. The photo-fenton activity of KBFO and N-doped KBFO samples were analysed by degrading effluents like Methylene Blue (MB), Bisphenol-A (BPA) and antibiotics such as Norfloxacin (NOX) and Doxycycline (DOX). 20 mmol of Nitrogen-doped KBFO (20N-KBFO) exhibits enhanced catalytic activity while degrading MB. 20N-KBFO sample is further tested for degradation of Bisphenol-A and antibiotics in the presence of H2O2 and chelating agent L-cysteine. Under optimum conditions, MB, BPA, and NOX, and DOX are degraded by 99.5% (0.042 min-1), 83% (0.016 min-1), 72% (0.011 min-1) and 95% (0.026 min-1) of its initial concentration respectively. Photocurrent density of 20N-KBFO improves to 8.83 mA/cm2 from 4.31 mA/cm2 for pure KBFO. Photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical (PEC) properties of N-doped KBFO make it a promising candidate for energy and environmental applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MnWO4 nanorods have been successfully synthesized using a facile, cost-effective DNA-templated hydrothermal method. The effect of the hydrothermal reaction time and DNA template were systematically examined, and both were found to affect the surface morphology of the MnWO4. The prepared specimens were further investigated by x-ray diffraction analysis, Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, confocal Raman spectroscopy, high-resolution scanning electron microscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The morphological studies further confirmed formation of MnWO4 nanorod structure (MW-3 specimen) with dimensional size and length of 110 nm and 40 nm, respectively. Electrochemical investigations on the MnWO4 (MW-3 specimen) electrode revealed high specific capacitance of 386 F g−1 at scan rate of 5 mV s−1 with 90% capacitance retention after 2000 cycles and further excellent rate capability. These findings suggest that such MnWO4 nanorod electrode would be promising candidates for use in energy storage devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visible-light-driven photo-fenton-like catalytic activity and photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of nitrogen-doped brownmillerite KBiFe2O5 (KBFO) are investigated. The effective optical bandgap of KBFO reduces from 1.67 to 1.60 eV post N-doping, enabling both enhancement of visible light absorption and photoactivity. The photo-fenton activity of KBFO and N-doped KBFO samples were analysed by degrading effluents like Methylene Blue (MB), Bisphenol-A (BPA) and antibiotics such as Norfloxacin (NOX) and Doxycycline (DOX). 20 mmol of Nitrogen-doped KBFO (20N-KBFO) exhibits enhanced catalytic activity while degrading MB. 20N-KBFO sample is further tested for degradation of Bisphenol-A and antibiotics in the presence of H2O2 and chelating agent L-cysteine. Under optimum conditions, MB, BPA, and NOX, and DOX are degraded by 99.5% (0.042 min-1), 83% (0.016 min-1), 72% (0.011 min-1) and 95% (0.026 min-1) of its initial concentration respectively. Photocurrent density of 20N-KBFO improves to 8.83 mA/cm2 from 4.31 mA/cm2 for pure KBFO. Photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical (PEC) properties of N-doped KBFO make it a promising candidate for energy and environmental applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Dye-sensitized TiO2 solar cells were fabricated using tridentate ligand ruthenium(II) complexes, [Ru(dcbpy)(tptz)X]X (where dcbpy=4,4′-dicarboxy-2,2′-bipyridine, tptz=2,4,6-Tris(2-pyridyl)-s-triazine and X=Cl−, SCN−, CN−) attached to sol–gel processed TiO2 electrodes. The ligand tptz functions as spectator ligand and dcbpy functions as the anchoring ligand with sufficient visible light absorption. The synthesized complexes were characterized before using them in solar cells. The functioning of the solar cells fabricated using different conducting glasses was monitored and the current–voltage characteristics were measured. The efficiencies of different cells were calculated and compared. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Ultrasmall SnO 2 nanoparticles with an average size of 7 nm were synthesized by a hydrothermal method and composited with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) through an ultrasonic assisted solution process. The structural, functional, morphological and compositional properties of synthesised SnO 2 and rGO/SnO 2 were studied by XRD, FTIR, HRSEM, HRTEM, XPS and Raman analyses. The prepared materials were developed as a film over a PVA/KOH conductive layer coated substrate with varying thickness of 3, 5 and 7 μm to study their ozone sensing characteristics at room temperature. The physico-chemical properties reveal that the fabricated SnO 2 and rGO/SnO 2 nanocomposite films have a strong interaction with the ozone gas. Among the fabricated composite films rGO/SnO 2 -S1 film exhibits high ozone sensing response (38%) at room temperature. Additionally, the electrochemical performance of SnO 2 and rGO/SnO 2 nanocomposites was analysed and the rGO/SnO 2 nanocomposite exhibited higher specific capacitance (545 F g -1 ) than that of pure SnO 2 (236 F g -1 ) at a current density of 1 A g -1 with higher cyclic stability (96%) than that of pure SnO 2 (86%) at the current density of 20 A g -1 for a continuous 5000 charge-discharge cycles. Thus, the rGO/SnO 2 nanocomposite showed an excellent ozone sensing and energy storage performance., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)