Effect of Temperature on the Stability of Nickel Sulphide Reduced Graphene Oxide Nanocomposite Counter Electrode in Quantum Dot-Sensitized Solar Cells

Effect of Temperature on the Stability of Nickel Sulphide Reduced Graphene Oxide Nanocomposite Counter Electrode in Quantum Dot-Sensitized Solar Cells | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Effect of Temperature on the Stability of Nickel Sulphide Reduced Graphene Oxide Nanocomposite Counter Electrode in Quantum Dot-Sensitized Solar Cells Layla Haythoor Kharboot, Abdillah Sani Mohd Najib, Tuty Asma Abu Bakar, and 4 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7607941/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 08 Mar, 2026 Read the published version in Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Quantum-dot sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs) are equipped with counter electrodes (CEs) based on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and nickel sulphide (NiS/rGO). A hydrothermal method at 150°C with variable reaction times (5h, 10h, and 15h), was used to synthesize NiS/rGO CEs and evaluate their electrocatalytic activity, stability, and mechanical adhesion under varying conditions at (25°C, 40°C, 60°C, 80°C) for 100h. Electrochemical performance was assessed through cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and Tafel polarization. Results showed that NiS/rGO 5h exhibited superior electrocatalytic activity, achieving a significantly higher current density. CV results showed that NiS/rGO 5h generated the highest current density of 112.4 mA/cm 2 at 80°C (Pt = 8.07 mA/cm 2), and lower charge-transfer resistance (R ct values, 3.567 Ω·cm 2 at 80°C than (Pt = 674.4 Ω·cm 2). The high performance was attributed to the dominance of β-NiS phase. Additionally, the nanocomposites demonstrated strong mechanical adhesion and stability under prolonged exposure to elevated temperatures. This study highlights the potential of NiS/rGO nanocomposites as cost-effective and efficient alternatives to Pt for improved QDSSC performance. Nickel sulphide reduced graphene oxide nanocomposite Counter electrode hydrothermal method Quantum dot-sensitized solar cell electrocatalytic activity Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 08 Mar, 2026 Read the published version in Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7607941","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":519475179,"identity":"2ba9fdc1-a63f-41b7-a37f-24f2d0d9dd41","order_by":0,"name":"Layla Haythoor Kharboot","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universiti Teknologi Malaysia","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Layla","middleName":"Haythoor","lastName":"Kharboot","suffix":""},{"id":519475180,"identity":"e10f0f27-84c3-4c5e-9fd5-93c9d42992c6","order_by":1,"name":"Abdillah Sani Mohd Najib","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universiti Teknologi 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