Marisa Arunchaiya

Education:

• B.Sc.(Chemistry) Prince of Songkla University, Thailand.
• Ph.D.(Chemistry) University of Strathclyde, U.K.

Research interests:

Nanomaterials for Renewable Energy and Environmental Remediation.

Solar Energy Conversion to Electricity
We fabricate dye-sensitized solar cell which is a device for direct conversion of solar energy to electricity. The components that we study are :

Counter electrode : Non-platinum  materials such as polyaniline (PANI), polypyrrole (PPy), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) and carbon black with LaCoO₃ additive have been used as counter electrodes to replace the expensive platinum counter electrode.

• Photoanode : TiO₂ with wide band gap semiconductor such as ZnO, SnO₂, Al₂O₃, ZrO₂, SrTiO₃ have been studied.
• Sensitizer :   Natural dyes, ruthenium complex (N719) and CH₃NH₃PbI₃ are employed.
• Electrolyte : Solid/quasi-solid electrolytes using poly(ethylene oxide) based composite electrolyte with  I^–/I₂ redox couple as mediator have been modified.

Solar Energy Conversion to Hydrogen by  Water Splitting
We are developing new materials or catalysts such as metal oxides and perovskites to be used as electrodes for efficient photo-electrochemical cell to split water.

Selected Publications

1. S. Jamikorn, M. Arunchaiya, D. Friedrich, Th. Dittrich, Solar cell based on PEO, inorganic cations and ionic liquids. Nanomaterials and Energy 1, 216-224 (2012).

2. V. Somsongkul, C. Saekung, S. H. Thang, A. Wongchaisuwat and M. Arunchaiya, Composite Poly(ethylene oxide) Electrolyte Modified with Ethanol for Dye-sensitized Solar Cells, Chiang Mai J. Sci. 38(2), 223-230 (2011).

3. V. Somsongkul, A. Wongchaisuwat, A. Worayingyong and M. Arunchaiya, Carbon-black-LaCoO₃ composite material as counter electrode for quasi-solid-state dye-sensitized solar cell, Mater. Sci. Forum 663-665, 451-454 (2011).

4. S. Vivekaphirat, C. Sae-kung, S. H. Thang, A. Wongchaisuwat and M. Arunchaiya, Improved stability of unsealed quasi-solid-state dye-sensitized solar cell using poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) film as layer electrolyte, Mater. Sci. Forum 663-665, 852-856 (2011).