Honors Program Theses
Award/Availability
Open Access Honors Program Thesis
First Advisor
Jeffrey Elbert
Keywords
Solar cells--Materials; Light absorption; Ruthenium compounds;
Abstract
After extensive review of the field of dye-sensitized solar cells, the molecule [Ru(4,4’- dicarboxy-2,2’-bipyridine)(4,4’-di-(2-(2-pyridyl)ethenyl)-2,2’-bipyridine)(NCS)2] has been designed as an original contribution to the field. This dye sensitizer was chosen by derivatizing upon the structure of the standard sensitizer, cis-diisothiocyanatobis(4,4’-dicarboxylic acid-2,2’- bipyridine)ruthenium(II) (N3), by extending the conjugation of one bipyridine ligand. This structural derivatization should enhance light harvesting by red-shifting the dye’s absorbance and increasing the dye’s molar absorptivity, which should result in a dye-sensitized solar cell with higher efficiency. The Density Functional Theory (DFT) molecular orbital calculations of the new dye complex indicate that the HOMO is highly localized around the NCS ligands, while the LUMO is shifted toward the anchoring 4,4’-dicarboxylic acid-2,2’-bipyridine ligand. The final dye complex has not been completed, but the synthesis of the previously unpublished 4,4’-di-(2- (2-pyridyl)ethenyl)-2,2’-bipyridine ligand is described. The product was characterized by 1HNMR and LC/MS.
Year of Submission
2010
Department
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
University Honors Designation
A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the designation University Honors
Date Original
5-2010
Object Description
1 PDF file (ix, 36 pages)
Copyright
©2016 Joel Thomas Kirner
Language
EN
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Kirner, Joel Thomas, "Synthesis and characterization of a [Ru(bpy)2(NCS)2] derivative for use as a dye-sensitizer in nanocrystalline solar cells" (2010). Honors Program Theses. 249.
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/hpt/249
