Journal of Advanced Materials in Engineering (Esteghlal)

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This paper presents the complete algorithm of site response analysis of nonhomogeneous topographic structures using transient two-dimensional boundary element method (BEM). Seismic behaviour of various topographic features including canyon, half plane, sedimentary filled valley and ridge sections, subjected to incident SV and P waves are analysed. The analysis shows the efficiency of the proposed algorithm and its advantage over common transformed domains methods in forming a basis for extension to non-linear behaviour.

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Conventionally, a film of TiO₂ particles of ~300 nm size is employed in DSCs as the back reflector film to enhance the light harvesting. In this study, two electrolytes with different transparencies, iodide-based and cobalt-based electrolytes, were used to investigate the transparency effect of electrolytes on light back-scattering from back scattering layer and also to study its effect on the performance of DSCs. The use of cobalt-based electrolyte is recommended from the view point of optical properties as due to the light absorption in electrolytes, the current density losses are 2.9mA/cm² and 4.2 mA/cm² in cobalt- and iodide-based electrolytes, respectively, and the transmission of 100% is observed for cobalt-based electrolyte in 500-600 nm in spite of iodide-based electrolyte. Use of light back-scattering layer, unlike iodide-based cell, causes external quantum efficiency in cobalt-base cell to increase for the wavelengths lower than 350 nm since cobalt-base electrolyte has transparency in this region. In addition, optical calculations demonstrate that in the range 400-500 nm, in which dye has a noticeable absorption, absorption loss is 40% and 30% for iodide- and cobalt-based electrolytes, respectively.