Jude O. Ozuomba, Laeticia U. Okoli and Azubuike J. Ekpunobi
Development of renewable energy resources in the near future is an urgent issue. One strategy is the development of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs); they are extremely promising, because they are made of low-cost materials and they do not need elaborate apparatus to manufacture. Titanium (iv) oxide is the most promising material for the electrode of DSSCs, while ruthenium complexes remains one of the best sensitizers for TiO2. We studied the performance of anthocyanin-dyed TiO2 as a DSSC material. Anthocyanin dye is an extract from hibiscus sabdariffa which is an adible plant called zobo by Nigerians. Optical absorbance measurements showed that anthocyanin-dyed TiO2 electrode could absorb incident solar radiation beyond the ultraviolet region. Comparison of current-voltage characteristics with those of a bare (unstained) solar cell revealed that the anthocyanin-dyed cell has an outstanding better photovoltaic behaviour than the bare cell. Out-door diurnal power variation measurements showed that the anthocyanin-stained TiO2 electrode was not stable under exposure to incident solar irradiation
