RETRACTED ARTICLE: Enhancement of TiO2 nanoparticle properties and efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells using modifiers

Abstract A low-temperature hydrothermal process developed to synthesizes titania nanoparticles with controlled size. We investigate the effects of modifier substances, urea, on surface chemistry of titania (TiO 2 ) nanopowder and its applications in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Treating the nanoparticles with a modifier solution changes its morphology, which allows the TiO 2 nanoparticles to exhibit properties that differ from untreated TiO 2 nanoparticles. The obtained TiO 2 nanoparticle electrodes characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM/HRTEM, UV–VIS Spectroscopy and FTIR. Experimental results indicate that the effect of bulk traps and the surface states within the TiO 2 nanoparticle films using modifiers enhances the efficiency in DSSCs. Under 100-mW cm −2 simulated sunlight, the titania nanoparticles DSSC showed solar energy conversion efficiency = 4.6 %, with V oc = 0.74 V, J sc = 9.7324 mA cm −2 , and fill factor = 71.35.