Thermoelectric(TE)materials are receiving increasing attention due to their ability to directly converting heat to electricity.They are used to harvest electrical energy from the wasted heat in order to increase the e...Thermoelectric(TE)materials are receiving increasing attention due to their ability to directly converting heat to electricity.They are used to harvest electrical energy from the wasted heat in order to increase the efficiency of global energy.Polymer-based TE materials are particularly fascinating to wearable and mobile devices due to their low density,good flexibility,and low toxicity.This review summarizes the recent breakthroughs and optimization strategies of polymer-based TE materials.Among a large number of different organic TE materials,those with remarkable TE performance are selected and divided into three categories,which are poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)derivatives,carbon nanotube/conductive polymer composites,and inorganic semiconductive nanomaterial/polymer composites.The effect of components and structures on the power factor are presented and discussed.Finally,some challenges are described and suggestions are provided for preparing the next-generation of polymer-based materials with high TE performance.展开更多
The studies of organic thermoelectric(TE)materials mainly focus on conductive polymers due to their conjugated molecular structures and high intrinsic electrical conductivity.When the conductive polymer is mixed with ...The studies of organic thermoelectric(TE)materials mainly focus on conductive polymers due to their conjugated molecular structures and high intrinsic electrical conductivity.When the conductive polymer is mixed with certain insulating polymers,the power factor was found enhanced.It is doubtful that the partially conjugated molecular structure is beneficial to the TE performance.Polyacrylonitrile(PAN)is an insulating polymer with a non-conjugated structure in its backbone,however,it has a partially conjugated structure after thermal treatment.In this work,a composite of PAN and multi-walled carbon nanotubes(MWCNT)was made and thermally treated in order to study the partially conjugated structure on the improvement of the power factor.By controlling the PAN content and the temperature of thermal treatments,a maximum power factor of 22 mW/mK2 was obtained from the MWCNT/PAN composite with 45%PAN content after thermally treated at 300℃in air,which is 300%and 80%higher than that without PAN and before thermal treatment,respectively.It is demonstrated that the partially conjugated polymers play an important role in TE performance and they are promising candidates for high-efficient organic TE materials.展开更多
文摘Thermoelectric(TE)materials are receiving increasing attention due to their ability to directly converting heat to electricity.They are used to harvest electrical energy from the wasted heat in order to increase the efficiency of global energy.Polymer-based TE materials are particularly fascinating to wearable and mobile devices due to their low density,good flexibility,and low toxicity.This review summarizes the recent breakthroughs and optimization strategies of polymer-based TE materials.Among a large number of different organic TE materials,those with remarkable TE performance are selected and divided into three categories,which are poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)derivatives,carbon nanotube/conductive polymer composites,and inorganic semiconductive nanomaterial/polymer composites.The effect of components and structures on the power factor are presented and discussed.Finally,some challenges are described and suggestions are provided for preparing the next-generation of polymer-based materials with high TE performance.
文摘The studies of organic thermoelectric(TE)materials mainly focus on conductive polymers due to their conjugated molecular structures and high intrinsic electrical conductivity.When the conductive polymer is mixed with certain insulating polymers,the power factor was found enhanced.It is doubtful that the partially conjugated molecular structure is beneficial to the TE performance.Polyacrylonitrile(PAN)is an insulating polymer with a non-conjugated structure in its backbone,however,it has a partially conjugated structure after thermal treatment.In this work,a composite of PAN and multi-walled carbon nanotubes(MWCNT)was made and thermally treated in order to study the partially conjugated structure on the improvement of the power factor.By controlling the PAN content and the temperature of thermal treatments,a maximum power factor of 22 mW/mK2 was obtained from the MWCNT/PAN composite with 45%PAN content after thermally treated at 300℃in air,which is 300%and 80%higher than that without PAN and before thermal treatment,respectively.It is demonstrated that the partially conjugated polymers play an important role in TE performance and they are promising candidates for high-efficient organic TE materials.
