Evaluation of Avocado Peels Dye as Sensitizer in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells by Experiment and Computational Intelligence

This work was designed to evaluate the unmodified and modified natural dye obtained from a sensitizer in dye-sensitized solar cells using experimental and computational approaches. Natural dye (APPE) was extracted from Avocado pear (Persea Americana) peels and chemically modified into nanocomposite by a one-pot reaction with silver nitrate. The modified dye was characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopy, Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The APPE and APPE-AgNPs composite show maximum wavelength of light absorption at 542 nm and 493 nm respectively. Both APPE and APPE-AgNPs were evaluated as sensitizers for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). The APPE-AgNPs dye afforded a higher power conversion efficiency of 0.93% compared to 0.44% for APPE. Current-voltage responses and photo-electrochemical properties were determined at one sun illumination. The electronic properties of the major phyto-compounds in the dye, namely perseorangin and cyanidin associated with light harvesting and sensitization were modeled using a quantum chemical computational approach. The power conversion efficiency of APPE-AgNPs obtained from this study compares with other plant-based dye sensitizers and hence could be deployed for practical application.