Abstract
In this work, the Cu-doped TiO2 nanopowder was synthesized using hydrothermal method at 150 [degrees]C. Commercial nanopowder of TiO sub(2) was mixed with CuO in 10 M NaOH solution and treated hydrothermally. The synthesized powder was characterized with FESEM, X-ray diffraction, UV-Vis, FTIR and Raman scattering to obtain elemental, structural and morphological information. Flower extracts of Dahlia Violet (DV), Rabbit flower (RF) and their mixed extract was used with commercial N719 dye and DSSC characteristics were studied under simulated condition. DSSCs of the synthesized powder were fabricated using conventional sandwich type technique and sealed with Surlyn(R)polymer film to avoid electrolyte leakage. The photocurrent-voltage characteristics were obtained using source-meter. It is interesting to note that the flower extract resulted in enhanced photoconversion efficiency over that of N719 dye. When the powder was sensitized with N719, 1.81% efficiency was achieved while mixed extract (ME) resulted in 3.88%, RF in 2.11% and DV in 1.83%. The study indicated that such extracts can be used for improved photoconversion properties.