3 D single-walled carbon nanotube/graphene aerogels as pt-free transparent counter electrodes for high efficiency dye-sensitized solar cells.

3D single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT)/graphene aerogel (NGS) was synthesized and used as an alternative to platinized fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). An island-like structure formed on the FTO using the spin-coating method, leading to a transmittance (49.86 % at 671 nm). The resulting NGS-based counter electrodes (CEs) exhibited excellent power conversion efficiency (PCE) (8.31 %) compared to Pt (7.56 %). Surprisingly, PCE increased to 9.64 % under assisted by a mirror; The excellent performance of DSSCs can be attributed to the high electrical conductivity and good electrocatalytic activity induced by the SWCNTs and the excellent catalytic properties of graphene, coupled with the 3D structure with a larger surface area and good surface hydrophilicity for increased electrolyte-electrode interactions and electrolyte/reactant diffusion. Hence, our results demonstrate that 3D-NGS materials have considerable potential for DSSC-related applications and merit further investigation.