Experimental and quantum chemical study on geometry, stability, electronic structures, electronic Absorption, solvents effect and efficiency of β,ε-carotene-3,3’-diol as Natural Sensitizers for Dye Sensitized Solar Cells
β,ε-carotene-3,3’-diol (Lutein) extracted from the leaves of Murraya Koeniggi was subjected to acetone, ethanol and methanol and the effect of solvents on the efficiency of Natural Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (NDSSC) were discussed using UV-VIS, FTIR, and FESEM techniques. DSSC fabrication procedure has been employed using these natural dyes as natural sensitizer of TiO2 films. DFT and TD-DFT computations were carried out to study and compare the HOMO-LUMO energy gaps and MEP. The HOMO-LUMO energy of the dye, together with the energies of the valence and conduction band edges for TiO2 and the redox level of the I−/I3− electrolyte are compared.The effect of polar aprotic and protic solvents used in the sensitization process was investigated for the improvement in conversion efficiency of a cell. The overall solar energy conversion efficiencies were obtained as 0.70%, 0.65% and 0.59% for the dye extracted in acetone, ethanol and methanol respectively.
