Phthalocyanines for dye-sensitized solar cells

Hybrid iron(II) phthalocyaninatoclathrochelates with a terminal reactive vinyl group and their organo-inorganic polymeric derivatives: synthetic approaches, X-ray structures and copolymerization with styrene

Hybrid metallo(IV)phthalocyaninate-capped tris-dioximate iron(II) complexes (termed as "phthalocyaninatoclathrochelates") with non-equivalent apical fragments and functionalized with one terminal reactive vinyl group were prepared for the first time using three different synthetic approaches: (i) transmetallation (capping group exchange) of the appropriate labile boron,antimony-capped cage precursors, (ii) capping of the initially isolated reactive semiclathrochelate intermediate, and (iii) direct one-pot template condensation of their ligand synthons on the iron(II) ion as a matrix. The obtained polytopic cage complexes were characterized using elemental analysis, ¹H NMR, MALDI-TOF MS and UV-vis spectra, and the single-crystal X-ray diffraction experiments. One of the obtained vinyl-terminated iron(II) phthalocyaninatoclathrochelates and its semiclathrochelate precursor were tested as monomers in a copolymerization reaction with styrene as the main component. These vinyl-terminated (semi)clathrochelate iron(II) complexes were found to be successfully copolymerized with this industrially important monomer, affording the intensely colored copolymer products. Because of a low solubility of the tested zirconium(IV) phthalocyaninate-capped tris-nioximate monomer in styrene as a solvent, a molar ratio of 1 : 500 was used. The obtained copolymer products and the kinetics of their formation were studied using GPC, FTIR, UV-vis, TGA and DSC methods. Even at such a low concentration of the Fe,Zr-binuclear metallocomplex component, an increase in the rate of the UV-light degradation of the organo-inorganic products, as well as in their thermal stability, was observed.

Could termites be hiding a goldmine of obscure yet promising yeasts for energy crisis solutions based on aromatic wastes? A critical state-of-the-art review

Biodiesel is a renewable fuel that can be produced from a range of organic and renewable feedstock including fresh or vegetable oils, animal fats, and oilseed plants. In recent years, the lignin-based aromatic wastes, such as various aromatic waste polymers from agriculture, or organic dye wastewater from textile industry, have attracted much attention in academia, which can be uniquely selected as a potential renewable feedstock for biodiesel product converted by yeast cell factory technology. This current investigation indicated that the highest percentage of lipid accumulation can be achieved as high as 47.25% by an oleaginous yeast strain, Meyerozyma caribbica SSA1654, isolated from a wood-feeding termite gut system, where its synthetic oil conversion ability can reach up to 0.08 (g/l/h) and the fatty acid composition in yeast cells represents over 95% of total fatty acids that are similar to that of vegetable oils. Clearly, the use of oleaginous yeasts, isolated from wood-feeding termites, for synthesizing lipids from aromatics is a clean, efficient, and competitive path to achieve "a sustainable development" towards biodiesel production. However, the lacking of potent oleaginous yeasts to transform lipids from various aromatics, and an unknown metabolic regulation mechanism presented in the natural oleaginous yeast cells are the fundamental challenge we have to face for a potential cell factory development. Under this scope, this review has proposed a novel concept and approach strategy in utilization of oleaginous yeasts as the cell factory to convert aromatic wastes to lipids as the substrate for biodiesel transformation. Therefore, screening robust oleaginous yeast strain(s) from wood-feeding termite gut system with a set of the desirable specific tolerance characteristics is essential. In addition, to reconstruct a desirable metabolic pathway/network to maximize the lipid transformation and accumulation rate from the aromatic wastes with the applications of various "omics" technologies or a synthetic biology approach, where the work agenda will also include to analyze the genome characteristics, to develop a new base mutation gene editing technology, as well as to clarify the influence of the insertion position of aromatic compounds and other biosynthetic pathways in the industrial chassis genome on the expressional level and genome stability. With these unique designs running with a set of the advanced biotech approaches, a novel metabolic pathway using robust oleaginous yeast developed as a cell factory concept can be potentially constructed, integrated and optimized, suggesting that the hypothesis we proposed in utilizing aromatic wastes as a feedstock towards biodiesel product is technically promising and potentially applicable in the near future.

Fullerene binding effects in Al(III)/Zn(II) Porphyrin/Phthalocyanine photophysical properties and charge transport

We evaluate the fullerene C₆₀ binding effect; through the metal (Al) and through the ligand (Pc,TPP), on the photophysical and charge transport properties of M-porphyrin(TPP)/phthalocyanine(Pc) (M = Al(III), Zn(II)). We perform density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT calculations for the macrocycle-C₆₀ dyads, showing that all systems studied are thermodynamically favorable. The C₆₀ binding effect on the absorption spectrum is a red-shift of the Q and Soret (B) bands of TPPs and Pcs. The Pc-dyads show longer λ for Q bands (673 nm) than those with TPP (568 nm). AlTPP-C₆₀ and ZnTPP-C₆₀ show a more favorable electron injection to TiO₂ than the analogs Pcs, and the regeneration of the dye is preferred in AlTPP-C₆₀ and AlPc-C₆₀. Zero-bias conductance is computed (10^-4-10^-7 G₀) for the dyads using molecular junctions with Au(111)-based electrodes. When a bias voltage of around 0.6 V up to 1 V is applied, an increase in current is obtained for AlTPP-C₆₀ (10^-7 A), ZnTPP-C₆₀ (10^-7 A), and AlPc-C₆₀ (10^-8 A). Although there is not a unique trend in the behavior of the dyads, Pcs have better photophysical properties than TPPs and the latter are better in the charge transport. We conclude that AlTPP(ZnTPP)-C₆₀ dyads are an excellent alternative for designing new materials for dye-sensitized solar cells or optoelectronic devices.

Exploring the Association of Electron‐Donating Corroles with Phthalocyanines as Electron Acceptors

Electron‐donating corroles (Cor) were integrated with electron‐accepting phthalocyanines (Pc) to afford two different non‐covalent Cor ⋅ Pc systems. At the forefront was the coordination between a 10‐meso‐pyridine Cor and a ZnPc. The complexation was corroborated in a combination of NMR, absorption, and fluorescence assays, and revealed association with binding constants as high as 10⁶  m⁻¹. Steady‐state and time‐resolved spectroscopies evidenced that regardless of exciting Cor or Pc, the charge‐separated state evolved efficiently in both cases, followed by a slow charge‐recombination to reinstate the ground state. The introduction of non‐covalent linkages between Cor and Pc induces sizeable differences in the context of light harvesting and transfer of charges when compared with covalently linked Cor‐Pc conjugates.

Solar energy conversion using first row d-block metal coordination compound sensitizers and redox mediators

The use of renewable energy is essential for the future of the Earth, and solar photons are the ultimate source of energy to satisfy the ever-increasing global energy demands. Photoconversion using dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) is becoming an established technology to contribute to the sustainable energy market, and among state-of-the art DSCs are those which rely on ruthenium(ii) sensitizers and the triiodide/iodide (I3 -/I-) redox mediator. Ruthenium is a critical raw material, and in this review, we focus on the use of coordination complexes of the more abundant first row d-block metals, in particular copper, iron and zinc, as dyes in DSCs. A major challenge in these DSCs is an enhancement of their photoconversion efficiencies (PCEs) which currently lag significantly behind those containing ruthenium-based dyes. The redox mediator in a DSC is responsible for regenerating the ground state of the dye. Although the I3 -/I- couple has become an established redox shuttle, it has disadvantages: its redox potential limits the values of the open-circuit voltage (V OC) in the DSC and its use creates a corrosive chemical environment within the DSC which impacts upon the long-term stability of the cells. First row d-block metal coordination compounds, especially those containing cobalt, and copper, have come to the fore in the development of alternative redox mediators and we detail the progress in this field over the last decade, with particular attention to Cu2+/Cu+ redox mediators which, when coupled with appropriate dyes, have achieved V OC values in excess of 1000 mV. We also draw attention to aspects of the recyclability of DSCs.

Electrochemically Deposited Zinc (Tetraamino)phthalocyanine as a Light-activated Antimicrobial Coating Effective against S. aureus

Light-activated antimicrobial coatings are currently considered to be a promising approach for the prevention of nosocomial infections. In this work, we present a straightforward strategy for the deposition of a photoactive biocidal organic layer of zinc (tetraamino)phthalocyanine (ZnPcNH2) in an electrochemical oxidative process. The chemical structure and morphology of the resulting layer are widely characterized by microscopic and spectroscopic techniques, while its ability to photogenerate reactive oxygen species (ROS) is investigated in situ by UV-Vis spectroscopy with α-terpinene or 1,3-diphenylisobenzofuran as a chemical trap. It is shown that the ZnPcNH2 photosensitizer retained its photoactivity after immobilization, and that the reported light-activated coating exhibits promising antimicrobial properties towards Staphyloccocus aureus (S. aureus).

Low-Symmetry Phthalocyanines Bearing Carboxy-Groups: Synthesis, Spectroscopic and Quantum-Chemical Characterization

The synthesis and characterization of A₃B-type phthalocyanines, ZnPc1–4, bearing bulky 2,6-diisopropylphenoxy-groups or chlorine atoms on isoindoline units “A” and either one or two carboxylic anchors on isoindoline unit “B” are reported. A comparison of molecular modelling with the conventional time dependent—density functional theory (TD-DFT) approach and its simplified sTD-DFT approximation provides further evidence that the latter method accurately reproduces the key trends in the spectral properties, providing colossal savings in computer time for quite large molecules. This demonstrates that it is a valuable tool for guiding the rational design of new phthalocyanines for practical applications.

Accurate predictions of the electronic excited states of BODIPY based dye sensitizers using spin-component-scaled double-hybrid functionals: a TD-DFT benchmark study

The vertical excitation energies of 13 BODIPY based dye sensitizers are benchmarked by means of TD-DFT, using 36 functionals from different DFT rungs. Most TD-DFT results were found to overestimate the excitation energies, and show mean absolute error (MAE) values in the range 0.2-0.5 eV. The dispersion-corrected, spin-component-scaled, double-hybrid (DSD) functionals DSD-BLYP and DSD-PBEP86 were found to have the smallest MAE values of 0.083 eV and 0.106 eV, respectively, which is close to the range of average errors found in the more expensive coupled-cluster methods. Moreover, DSD-BLYP and DSD-PBEP86 functionals show excellent consistency and quality of results (standard deviation = 0.048 eV and 0.069 eV respectively). However, the range separated hybrid (RSH) and the range separated double hybrid (RSDH) functionals were found to provide the best predictability (linear determination coefficient R 2 > 0.97 eV).

A new sterically hindered asymmetric zinc phthalocyanine as an efficient sensitizer for dye-sensitized solar cells

A novel push–pull zinc phthalocyanine dye (KH1) containing 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenoxy donor groups was synthesized for DSSCs. The DSSC based on the dye exhibited a PCE of 3.12%.

Coherent ring-current migration of Mg-phthalocyanine probed by time-resolved X-ray circular dichroism

The coherent ring current of Mg-phthalocyanine created by a broad band UV-visible pump pulse shows variation with time, where the ring currents at the corner benzene rings, around the Mg cation and on the outer ring oscillate with different time periods and the current density migrates among these regions. The 7 pairs of E_u degenerate excited states populated upon photoexcitation, generate 21 distinct coherent ring currents. We further calculate the time-resolved X-ray circular dichroism (TRXCD) spectrum of the coherences contributing to the ring current obtained by an attosecond X-ray probe pulse resonant with the nitrogen K-edge. A frequency domain TRXCD signal obtained by a Fourier transform of the signal with respect to the pump-probe delay time clearly separates the currents induced by different state pairs.

The coherent ring current of Mg-phthalocyanine are created by a broad band UV-visible pump pulse and migrate into different regions within the molecule. This coherent ring current dynamics is probed by time-resolved X-ray circular dichroism.

Synthesis and reactivity of the apically functionalized (pseudo)macrobicyclic iron(ii) tris-dioximates and their hybrid phthalocyaninatoclathrochelate derivatives comprising reactive and vector terminal groups

Iron(ii) phthalocyaninatoclathrochelates functionalized with terminal reactive formyl group were prepared. Their post-synthetic functionalization gave those with vector pharmacophoric fragment.

Octopus-Type Crown-Bisphthalocyaninate Anchor for Bottom-Up Assembly of Supramolecular Bilayers with Expanded Redox-Switching Capability

Achievement of information storage at molecular level remains a pressing task in miniaturization of computing technology. One of the promising approaches for its practical realization is development of nanoscale molecular switching materials including redox-active systems. The present work demonstrates a concept of expansion of a number of available redox-states of self-assembled monolayers through supramolecular approach. For this, the authors synthesized an octopus-like heteroleptic terbium(III) bisphthalocyaninate bearing one ligand with eight thioacetate-terminated "tentacles" (octopus-Pc) and a ligand with four crown-ether moieties (H₂ [(15C5)₄ Pc]). It is shown that octopus-Pc forms stable monolayers on gold, where its face-on orientation allows for subsequent binding of crown-phthalocyanine molecules via potassium ion bridges. This chemistry is utilized to form a heterogeneous bilayer, in which a single molecule thick adlayer brings an additional redox-state to the system, thus expanding the multistability of the system as a whole. All four redox states available to this system exhibit characteristic absorbance in visible range, allowing for the switching to be easily read out using optical density measurements. The proposed approach can be used in wide range of switchable materials-single-molecule magnets, conductive, and optical devices, etc.

Assessment of time-dependent density functionals for the electronic excitation energies of organic dyes used in DSSCs

The absorption spectra modeled as the vertical excitation energies of 13 dye sensitizers used in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are benchmarked by means of time-dependent (TD)-DFT, using 36 functionals from different DFT rungs.

Water-soluble sulfonated phosphorus(V) corrolazines and porphyrazines: the effect of macrocycle contraction and pyrazine ring fusion on spectral, acid-base and photophysical properties

Novel water-soluble dihydroxophosphorus(V) complexes of sulphophenyl substituted porphyrazine (6), corrolazine (7) and its pyrazine fused derivative (8) were prepared and their spectral, acid-base and photophysical properties in aqueous solutions were studied. Due to the presence of eight SO₃H groups, the compounds were fully monomeric (7 and 8) or only slightly aggregated (6) in water. Spectrophotometric titration revealed that the two stage deprotonation of axially bonded hydroxy groups can be achieved for porphyrazine 6 (pK_a1 = 5.62, pK_a2 = 9.13) and pyrazine fused corrolazine 8 (pK_a1 = 6.5, pK_a2 = 11.7), while only the first dissociation stage could be observed for corrolazine 7 (pK_a1 = 9.94). The fluorescence emission of the corrolazines 7, 8 and especially porphyrazine 6 was low in water (Φ_F = 0.086, 0.18, and 0.014, respectively) and completely quenched under basic conditions due to photoinduced electron transfer. In comparison with porphyrazine 6, the contraction of the macrocycle in the corrolazines 7 and 8 induced significant improvement of singlet oxygen production in water reaching values of Φ_Δ = 0.56 and 0.43, respectively, which makes the corrolazines promising photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy. The observed evolution of the electronic absorption spectra and fluorescence quenching observed in a basic medium was explained using the model DFT calculations (cc-pvtz basis set) performed for the dihydroxophosphorus(V) complexes of unsubstituted porphyrazine and corrolazine and their mono- and doubly deprotonated forms.

Phthalocyanine-based photoacoustic contrast agents for imaging and theranostics

Phthalocyanine, as an organic dye, has attracted much attention due to its high molar absorption coefficient in the near-infrared region (NIR). It is precisely because of this advantage that phthalocyanine is very beneficial to photoacoustic imaging (PAI). At present, many different strategies have been adopted to design phthalocyanine-based contrast agents with photoacoustic (PA) effect, including increasing water solubility, changing spectral properties, prolonging the circulation time, constructing activatable supramolecular nanoparticles, increasing targeting, etc. Based on this, this minireview highlighted the above ways to enhance the PA effect of phthalocyanine. What's more, the application of phthalocyanine-based PA contrast agents in biomedical imaging and image-guided phototherapy has been discussed. Finally, this minireview also provides the prospects and challenges of phthalocyanine-based PA contrast agents in order to provide some reference for the application of phthalocyanine-based PA contrast agents in biomedical imaging and guiding tumor treatment.

Switchable Aromaticity of Phthalocyanine via Reversible Nucleophilic Aromatic Addition to an Electron-Deficient Phosphorus(V) Complex

Reversible nucleophilic addition to a phthalocyanine core was observed for the first time for the electron-deficient cationic phosphorus(V) complex [PcP(OMe)₂]⁺, whose reaction with KOH afforded a highly distorted nonaromatic adduct bearing an OH group at one of the α-pyrrolic carbon atoms. This adduct was characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, ESI HRMS, and NMR, and UV-vis spectroscopy, together with quantum-chemical modeling. The acidic treatment of this adduct restored aromaticity and recovered the starting cationic complex. The reversible aromaticity breakage resulted in dramatic changes in the photophysical properties of the studied complex, which could pave the way to novel switchable Pc-based compounds and materials.

Asymmetric phthalocyanine compounds in the structure D-π-A containing cyano groups: Design, synthesis and dye-sensitized solar cell applications

In this study, asymmetric zinc phthalocyanine compounds with Donor-π-Anchor (D-π-A) property that enable the movement of electrons in molecular structure in one direction were synthesized. Phthalocyanines were designed to ensure electron mobility within the molecule and to facilitate the transfer of electrons to the TiO2 layer. The synthesized asymmetric zinc phthalocyanines (ZnPc-1 and ZnPc-2) are molecules with three donor biphenyls and one anchor aldehyde group and three acceptor/anchor cyano and one anchor aldehyde group, respectively. The effect of biphenyl and cyano groups on cell efficiency with aldehyde anchor group was investigated. The structure of the synthesized phthalocyanines was characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (FTIR), Mass Spectrometry (MS), UV-vis, Fluorescence spectroscopy. The experimentally calculated optical band gap values were supported by the values found by Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations. dye sensitive solar cells were measured and the efficiencies were evaluated with reference to the N719 standard dye. In the solar cell measurements of the designed phthalocyanines, the structure containing the cyano group has been given a higher photovoltaic cell thanks to the higher short circuit photo-current (Jsc). In this way, the highest power conversion efficiency value was achieved among the cyano group molecules.

Chemical and Electronic Structure Characterization of Electrochemically Deposited Nickel Tetraamino-phthalocyanine: A Step toward More Efficient Deposition Techniques for Organic Electronics Application

Phthalocyanines (Pc), with or without metal ligands, are still of high research interest, mainly for the application in organic electronics. Because of rather low solubility, Pc-based films are commonly deposited applying various advanced and demanding vacuum techniques, like physical vapor deposition (PVD). In this work, an alternative straightforward approach of NiPc layer formation is proposed in which NH₂-side groups of nickel(II) tetraamino-phthalocyanine (AmNiPc) are engaged in the process of electrochemical deposition of (AmNiPc)_layer on indium-tin oxide (ITO) substrates. The resulting layer is widely investigated by cyclic voltammetry, atomic force microscopy, UV-vis, and ATR-IR spectroscopies, X-ray diffraction, and photoemission techniques: X-ray and UV-photoelectron spectroscopies. The chemical and electronic structure of (AmNiPc)_layer is characterized. It is shown that the electronic properties of the formed (AmNiPc)_layer/ITO hybrid correspond to the ones previously reported for PVD-NiPc films.

Natural Clay-Based Materials for Energy Storage and Conversion Applications

Among various energy storage and conversion materials, functionalized natural clays display significant potentials as electrodes, electrolytes, separators, and nanofillers in energy storage and conversion devices. Natural clays have porous structures, tunable specific surface areas, remarkable thermal and mechanical stabilities, abundant reserves, and cost-effectiveness. In addition, natural clays deliver the advantages of high ionic conductivity and hydrophilicity, which are beneficial properties for solid-state electrolytes. This review article provides an overview toward the recent advancements in natural clay-based energy materials. First, it comprehensively summarizes the structure, classification, and chemical modification methods of natural clays to make them suitable in energy storage and conversion devices. Then, the particular attention is focused on the application of clays in the fields of lithium-ion batteries, lithium-sulfur batteries, zinc-ion batteries, chloride-ion batteries, supercapacitors, solar cells, and fuel cells. Finally, the possible future research directions are provided for natural clays as energy materials. This review aims at facilitating the rapid developments of natural clay-based energy materials through a fruitful discussion from inorganic and materials chemistry aspects, and also promotes the broad sphere of clay-based materials for other utilization, such as effluent treatment, heavy metal removal, and environmental remediation.

Non-metallic organic dyes as photosensitizers for dye-sensitized solar cells: a review

The advent of novel technologies has led to the need for environmental and economic integration. Energy consumption plays a vital role in human existence, and thereby sustainable development is the need of the hour. When the methods of energy production are discussed, renewable resources are opted to meet the needs of the future with the key resources being solar and wind energy. Solar energy is widely adapted and harnessed due to its abundance and various benefits. Silicon-based solar cells, though produced higher efficiencies, have many cons due to their toxicity and cost. Dye-sensitized solar cells have been grounded as a better alternative due to their ability to function under low light, wider angles, and low internal temperature. In this review paper, various organic metal-free dyes, and their efficiencies along with their cell parameters are discussed. These metal-free dyes are adopted over conventional ruthenium dyes due to their non-toxicity, availability, and cost.

Phthalocyanine as a Bioinspired Model for Chlorophyll f-Containing Photosystem II Drives Photosynthesis into the Far-Red Region

The textbook explanation that P₆₈₀ pigments are the red limit to drive oxygenic photosynthesis must be reconsidered by the recent discovery that chlorophyll f (Chlf)-containing Photosystem II (PSII) absorbing at 727 nm can drive water oxidation. Two different families of unsymmetrically substituted Zn phthalocyanines (Pc) absorbing in the 700-800 nm spectral window and containing a fused imidazole-phenyl substituent or a fused imidazole-hydroxyphenyl group have been synthetized and characterized as a bioinspired model of the Chlf/Tyrosine_Z /Histidine₁₉₀ cofactors of PSII. Transient absorption studies in the presence of an electron acceptor and irradiating in the far-red region evidenced an intramolecular electron transfer process. Visible and FT-IR signatures indicate the formation of a hydrogen-bonded phenoxyl radical in ZnPc II-OH. This study sets the foundation for the utilization of a broader spectral window for multi-electronic catalytic processes with one of the most robust and efficient dyes.

Fluorinated Zinc and Copper Phthalocyanines as Efficient Third Components in Ternary Bulk Heterojunction Solar Cells

Fluorinated zinc and copper metallophthalocyanines MPcF48 are synthesized and incorporated as third component small molecules in ternary organic solar cells (TOSCs). To enable the high performance of TOSCs, maximizing short-circuit current density (J SC) is crucial. Ternary bulk heterojunction blends, consisting of a polymer donor PTB7-Th, fullerene acceptors PC70BM, and a third component MPcF48, are formulated to fabricate TOSCs with a device architecture of ITO/PFN/active layer/V2O5/Ag. Employing copper as metal atom substitution in the third component of TOSCs enhances J SC as a result of complementary absorption spectra in the near-infrared region. In combination with J SC enhancement, suppressed charge recombination, improved exciton dissociation and charge carrier collection efficiency, and better morphology lead to a slightly improved fill factor (FF), resulting in a 7% enhancement of PCE than those of binary OSCs. In addition to the increased PCE, the photostability of TOSCs has also been improved by the appropriate addition of CuPcF48. Detailed studies imply that metal atom substitution in phthalocyanines is an effective way to improve J SC, FF, and thus the performance and photostability of TOSCs.

A Janus-Type Phthalocyanine for the Assembly of Photoactive DNA Origami Coatings

Design and synthesis of novel photosensitizer architectures is a key step toward new multifunctional molecular materials. Photoactive Janus-type molecules provide interesting building blocks for such systems by presenting two well-defined chemical functionalities that can be utilized orthogonally. Herein a multifunctional phthalocyanine is reported, bearing a bulky and positively charged moiety that hinders their aggregation while providing the ability to adhere on DNA origami nanostructures via reversible electrostatic interactions. On the other hand, triethylene glycol moieties render a water-soluble and chemically inert corona that can stabilize the structures. This approach provides insight into the molecular design and synthesis of Janus-type sensitizers that can be combined with biomolecules, rendering optically active biohybrids.

Impedance Spectroscopy and Dielectric Relaxation of Imidazole-Substituted Palladium(II) Phthalocyanine (ImPdPc) for Organic Solar Cells

In this study, we investigated the potential of palladium tetrakis (imidazole) phthalocyanine (PdPc(Imz)₄) for use as an organic semiconductor for improving the photovoltaic performance. In order to get more information about the prevailing model of the conduction mechanism (correlated barrier hopping (CBH)) for PdPc(Imz)₄, electrical impedance measurements were performed at different temperatures and the obtained data were simulated by the Kohlraush Williams Watt (KWW) approach. Theoretical studies (density functional theory (DFT)) were performed and molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) maps were also extracted to understand the relationship between the molecular structures and the molecular electronic structure of PdPc(Imz)₄ and its semiconductor properties. Furthermore, studies on the AC electrical process as a function of temperature highlighted a hopping charge transport according to an equivalent electrical circuit composed of a parallel constant-phase element (CPE), capacitance in the grain boundary layer (C _g), and resistance of the grain boundary (R _g). To improve interpretation of the results, an in-depth analysis of the behavior of the electric transport was conducted. As a result, the correlated barrier hopping (CBH) conduction mechanism was shown to be the most suitable predominant conduction mechanism.

Axial Redox Tuning at a Tetragonal Cobalt Center

Square pyramidal cobalt complexes were prepared to study their multielectron redox properties. To build a stable redox-active cobalt complex, the combination of a tridentate ^acriPNP (^acriPNP^- = 4,5-bis(diisopropylphosphino)-2,7,9,9-tetramethyl-9H-acridin-10-ide) ligand with a bidentate ligand, such as 2,2'-bipyridine, 2-(o-phenyl)pyridine, biphenylene, and their analogues, was employed. In a cobalt complex having a tetragonal structure, the d_x²-y² orbital possesses an antibonding character and must remain empty for its structural integrity, while the d_z² orbital acts as a redox-active frontier molecular orbital (FMO). Tuning the redox potential of the Co(II/I) couple was successfully achieved by introducing a different axial donor. The reduction of Co(II) to Co(I) occurs at -2.6 V for a neutral donor but shifts to -3.4 V for an anionic donor. Since the redox-active d_z² orbital is close in energy to other ligand-based orbitals, multielectron redox activity is also observed. Electrochemical measurements indicate three reversible redox events within a window of -3.0-0.0 V vs Fc/Fc⁺ in tetrahydrofuran (THF). These redox processes are fully reversible for over 100 cycles, reflecting the electrochemical stability of these cobalt complexes. Surprisingly, the oxidation potential of the ^acriPNP ligand varies dramatically from +0.15 to -2.4 V, which is probably due to the cobalt contribution on the amido-based molecular orbital. The electronic structure of the cobalt complexes was examined structurally, spectroscopically, and theoretically.

Tuning the Acceptor Unit of Push-Pull Porphyrazines for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

A family of four push–pull porphyrazines of A₃B type, where each unit A contains two peripheral propyl chains and the unit B is endowed with a carboxylic acid, were prepared. The carboxylic acid was attached to the β-position of the pyrrolic unit, either directly (Pz 10), or through cyanovinyl (Pz 11) and phenyl (Pz 7) groups. The fourth Pz (14) consisted in a pyrazinoporphyrazine wherein the dinitrogenated heterocycle provided intrinsic donor–acceptor character to the macrocycle and contained a carboxyphenyl substituent. The direct attachment of the carboxylic acid functions and their linkers to the porphyrazine core produces stronger perturbation on the electronic properties of the macrocycle, with respect to their connection through fused benzene or pyrazine rings in TT112 and 14, respectively. The HOMO and LUMO energies of the Pzs, which were estimated with DFT calculations, show little variation within the series, except upon introduction of the cyanovinyl spacer, which produces a decrease in both frontier orbital energetic levels. This effective interaction of cyanovinyl substitution with the macrocycle is also evidenced in UV/Vis spectroscopy, where a large splitting of the Q-band indicates strong desymmetrization of the Pz. The performance of the four Pzs as photosensitizers in DSSCs were also investigated.

Sustainable Approaches to the Synthesis of Metallophthalocyanines in Solution

This work aims to investigate more sustainable reaction conditions for the synthesis of metallophthalocyanines. Anisole, glycerol and their mixtures have been investigated as reaction media for the tetramerization of phthalonitriles. Acetates of three divalent first-transition metal cations, Co(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II), were used and several bases were tested, depending on the chosen substrates and reaction conditions, with a view to making the whole process more sustainable while ensuring its scalability. Unsubstituted phthalocyanines were synthesized to analyze the behavior of the different metal ions in terms of reactivity in the new reaction media, resulting in a general Cu > Co > Zn trend, while the nonpolar tetra-tert-butyl substitution was investigated to evaluate the synthesis of soluble derivatives in the new conditions. Furthermore, the potassium hydroxide (KOH)-aided statistical synthesis of the unsymmetrical 9(10), 16(17), 23(24)-tri-tert-butyl-2-iodophthalocyaninato zinc(II), starting from 4-tert-butylphthalonitrile and 4-iodophthalonitrile in a glycerol/anisole mixture, proceeded with a satisfactory 26% yield. Our results provide insights into the investigation of new reaction environments and the understanding of their strengths and weaknesses, with a view to further increasing the sustainability of the synthesis of metallomacrocycles with high added value while lowering their production cost.

α-Substituted phthalocyanines based on metal-induced H- or J-type aggregation for silver and palladium ions: synthesis, fluorescence, and antimicrobial and antioxidant properties

In this study, firstly, 3-(2,3-bis(hexadecylthio)propoxy)phthalonitrile (2) as a new phthalonitrile derivative was prepared. Then, new types of non-peripheral phthalocyanine derivatives [CuPc (3), ZnPc (4), and CoPc (5)] were synthesized by using this ligand. The synthesized new compounds were characterized by common spectroscopic methods such as FTIR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, MALDI-TOF, UV-Vis and fluorescence spectroscopy. The H- or J-type aggregation behaviors of novel type metallophthalocyanines in the presence of valuable metal ions such as Ag(i) and Pd(ii) were investigated by UV-Vis and fluorescence spectroscopy. The quenching efficiency of the Ag(i) and Pd(ii) ions for ZnPc (4) was obtained using the Stern-Volmer equation and the quenching constant of ZnPc (4) towards Ag(i) and Pd(ii) ions was found to be 2.9 × 105 mol L-1 and 1.2 × 105 mol L-1, respectively. The binding constant (Ka) and binding stoichiometry (n) of Ag(i) and Pd(ii) ions for ZnPc (5) were calculated using a modified Benesi-Hildebrand equation, and were found to be 1.4 × 108 M-1 and 3.4 × 107 M-1, respectively. The binding ratio and free energy change of Ag(i) and Pd(ii) ions for ZnPc (4) were found to be 1.86, 1.54, -46.49 kJ mol-1 and -42.9 kJ mol-1, respectively. Also, the antioxidant properties of the synthesized novel type metallophthalocyanines and their Ag(i) and Pd(ii) ion doped aggregates were determined using three different methods: DPPH free radical scavenging activity, ferrous ion chelating activity and reducing power activity. Finally, the antibacterial and antifungal activities of phthalocyanine compounds synthesized within the scope of this study were determined by disc diffusion and macrobroth dilution methods and the effect of the doping of Ag(i) and Pd(ii) ions on the antibacterial activities of phthalocyanines was investigated.

Insight into the effects of the anchoring groups on the photovoltaic performance of unsymmetrical phthalocyanine based dye-sensitized solar cells

Push-pull zinc phthalocyanine dyes bearing hexylsulfanyl moieties as electron donors and carboxyethynyl as mono- or di-anchoring groups have been designed, synthesized and tested as sensitizers in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The effects of the anchoring groups on the optical, electrochemical and photovoltaic properties were investigated. The incorporation of a carboxyethynyl group in GT23 has a considerable effect on preventing dye aggregation due to its relatively non-planar structure. The mono-anchoring dye bearing a phenyl carboxyethynyl group, GT5, has a higher molar extinction coefficient and sufficient charge injection into the TiO2 conduction band. Therefore, GT5 achieved at least 90% higher power conversion efficiency than the di-anchoring dyes (GT31 and GT32). Time-dependent density functional theory (PBE0/6-31G(d,p)) was also used to calculate the electronic absorption spectra, which predicted very well the measured UV-Vis with an error of up to 0.11 eV for the Q bands and 0.3 eV for the B bands. The longest charge transfer bands are obtained in the visible light region and they correspond to a transfer phthalocyanine core → substituent with a carboxyethynyl group where the absorptions of GT32 (465 nm) and GT31 (461 nm) are red-shifted compared to GT23 (429 nm) and GT5 (441 nm). The interaction energy between the phthalocyanine and a cluster of anatase-TiO2 (H4Ti40O82) was calculated using density functional theory. For all phthalocyanines, the interaction favored is monodentate and corresponds to -O(OH)Ti(TiO2), where the stronger interaction occurs for GT32 (-2.11 eV) and GT31 (-2.25 eV). This study presents the molecular combination of the anchoring groups in zinc phthalocyanine sensitizers, which is one of the effective strategies for improving the performance of DSSCs.