Herein, the present work focuses on the effective counter electrode for dye-sensitized solar cells. The bottom–up approach was adapted to synthesize Mn2O3 nanorods via the hydrothermal method and the reduced graphene oxide was merged with Mn2O3 to prepare a nanocomposite. The prepared nanocomposites were subjected to physio-chemical and morphological characterizations which revealed the crystalline nature of Mn2O3 nanorods. The purity level rGO was characterized using the Raman spectrum and the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy employed to find the functional groups. The morphological micrographs were visualized using SEM and TEM and the high aspect ratio Mn2O3 nanorods were observed with 5–7 nm and supported by rGO sheets. The electrocatalytic nature and corrosion properties of the counter electrode towards the iodide electrolyte were studied using a symmetrical cell. The as-synthesized nanocomposites were introduced as counter electrodes for DSSC and produced 4.11% of photoconversion efficiency with lower charge transfer resistance. The fabricated DSSC devices were undergone for stability tests for indoor and outdoor atmospheres, the DSSC stability showed 93% and 80% respectively for 150 days.

In this investigation, we synthesized a novel quaternary nanocomposite, denoted as RGO-Ba(OH)2/CeO2/TiO2, through a straightforward and cost-effective solid-state synthesis approach. The as-prepared composites underwent a series of comprehensive characterizations, including XRD, FTIR, TGA-DTA, XPS, SEM, EDAX, and TEM analyses, affirming the successful synthesis of a quaternary nanocomposite with well-interconnected nanoparticles, nanorods, and sheet-like structures. Further, our electrochemical performance evaluations demonstrated that the electrochemical capacitance of the RGO-Ba(OH)2/CeO2/ TiO2 nanocomposite achieved an impressive value of 445 F g− 1 at a current density of 1.0 A g− 1, particularly when the mass ratio of CeO2 and TiO2 was maintained at 90:10. Furthermore, the specific capacitance retained a remarkable 65% even after 2000 cycles at a current density of 6 A g− 1 in a 3 mol KOH electrolyte. Comparatively, this outstanding electrochemical performance of the RGO-Ba(OH)2/CeO2/TiO2 (90:10) nanocomposite can be attributed to several factors. These include the favorable electrical conductivity and large specific surface area provided by graphene, TiO2, and Ba(OH)2, the enhanced energy density and extended cycle life resulting from the presence of CeO2, and the synergistic contributions among all four components. Therefore, the RGO-Ba(OH)2/CeO2/TiO2 nanocomposite emerges as a highly promising electrode material for supercapacitors.