High Electrocatalytic Activity of Vertically Aligned Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes towards Sulfide Redox Shuttles

Vertically aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes (VASWCNTs) have been successfully transferred onto transparent conducting oxide glass and implemented as efficient low-cost, platinum-free counter electrode in sulfide –mediated dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs), featuring notably improved electrocatalytic activity toward thiolate/disulfide redox shuttle over conventional Pt counter electrodes. Impressively, device with VASWCNTs counter electrode demonstrates a high fill factor of 0.68 and power conversion efficiency up to 5.25%, which is significantly higher than 0.56 and 3.49% for that with a conventional Pt electrode. Moreover, VASWCNTs counter electrode produces a charge transfer resistance of only 21.22 Ω towards aqueous polysulfide electrolyte commonly applied in quantum dots-sensitized solar cells (QDSCs), which is several orders of magnitude lower than that of a typical Pt electrode. Therefore, VASWCNTs counter electrodes are believed to be a versatile candidate for further improvement of the power conversion efficiency of other iodine-free redox couple based DSCs and polysulfide electrolyte based QDSCs

Laser Interactions for the Synthesis and In Situ Diagnostics of Nanomaterials

Laser interactions have traditionall been at thec center of nanomaterials science, providing highly nonequilibrium growth conditions to enable the syn- thesis of novel new nanoparticles, nanotubes, and nanowires with metastable phases. Simultaneously, lasers provide unique opportunities for the remote char- acterization of nanomaterial size, structure, and composition through tunable laser spectroscopy, scattering, and imaging. Pulsed lasers offer the opportunity, there- fore, to supply the required energy and excitation to both control and understand the growth processes of nanomaterials, providing valuable views of the typically nonequilibrium growth kinetics and intermediates involved. Here we illustrate the key challenges and progress in laser interactions for the synthesis and in situ diagnostics of nanomaterials through recent examples involving primarily carbon nanomaterials, including the pulsed growth of carbon nanotubes and graphene

Price cap regulation and the ratchet effect: a generalized index approach

Regulation, Technical change, Price cap, Ratchet effect, Incentives, D21, D24, L51, L95,