Light-produced polymer electrolytes for light-conversion in dye-sensitized solar cells

Nowadays, the conversion of solar energy by photovoltaic effect is the most quoted reality in the world of renewable resources. As a feasible option for photovoltaic technology to meet the growing energy demand, dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have attracted much attention due to their low cost, ease of fabrication and good performance. We have recently proposed polymer electrolyte membranes as a promising strategy to solve the poor long-term stability of standard liquid-state DSSCs. Membranes were prepared by a rapid, energy-saving and environment friendly technique of light-induced polymerization, that can find an appropriate location also in the nascent industrial production plants of third generation photovoltaic cells. The talk will be focused both on special fillers (MOF and nanocellulose) used to increase the light harvesting, and on the introduction of new redox couples (pseudohalogen- and cobalt-based), whose compatibility with polymeric matrix and effects on the light-curing process will be detailed. Lastly, the transfer of these polymer electrolytes in flexible devices (one of the most promising ambitions of DSSCs) will be presented.