Synthesis of Novel TCNQ analogous Dyes for Use with Dye Sensitized Solar Cell Chemistry, Specifically With Intended Application Towards Production Of Solar Hydrogen

With the looming problem of climate change imposing a significant threat from both a humanitarian and economic view, and the ever increasing demand for more energy in the developing world, a practical source of cheap, clean, ubiquitous energy is desperately needed. For many, the holy grail of the clean energy crisis is solar energy, but as it currently stands, solar energy is too expensive for private and commercial investment. New types of solar energy technology such as dye sensitized solar cells present cost-effective, scalable alternatives to the expensive silicon wafer technology which permeates the market. Dye sensitized solar cells also find themselves integrated with research on solar energy storage in the form of hydrogen gas, which many believe to be the clean fuel of the future. Within this thesis, the syntheses of acid-functionalized tetracyanoquinodimethane analogues (imitating a malononitrile moiety with a sulfone group) were attempted in the hopes of developing a fully organic sensitizer for both dye sensitized solar chemistry and dye sensitized photo-electrochemical cells.