Fabrication of Porous Polyvinylidene Fluoride/Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotube Nanocomposites and Their Enhanced Thermoelectric Performance

Abstract

Abstract:In this paper, a solvent vapor-induced phase separation (SVIPS) technique was used to create a porous structure in polyvinylidene fluoride/Multi-walled carbon nanotube (PVDF/MWNTs) composites with the aim of increasing the electrical conductivity through the incorporation of MWNTs while retaining a low thermal conductivity. By using the dimethylformamide/acetone mixture, porous networks could be generated in the PVDF/MWNTs composites upon the rapid volatilization of acetone. The electrical conductivity was gradually enhanced by the addition of MWNTs. At the same time, the thermal conductivity of the PVDF film could be retained at 0.1546 W·m −1 ·K −1 due to the porous structure being even by loaded with a high content of MWNTs (i.e., 15 wt.%). Thus, the Seebeck coefficient, power factor and figure of merit (ZT) were subsequently improved with maximum values of 324.45 µV/K, 1.679 µW·m −1 ·K −2 , and 3.3 × 10 −3 , respectively. The microstructures, thermal properties, and thermoelectric properties of the porous PVDF/MWNTs composites were studied. It was found that the enhancement of thermoelectric properties would be attributed to the oxidation of MWNTs and the porous structure of the composites. The decrease of thermal conductivity and the increase of Seebeck coefficient were induced by the phonon scattering and energy-filtering effect. The proposed method was found to be facile and effective in creating a positive effect on the thermoelectric properties of composites.

Recent Advances in Organic Thermoelectric Materials: Principle Mechanisms and Emerging Carbon-Based Green Energy Materials

“…Soon after, the development of efficient thermoelectric materials and devices widely emerged in the industrial and scientific communities [1,2,3,4,5,6]. In comparison with other energy transition materials, thermoelectric materials are endowed with various advantages, such as direct energy conversion without a moving part or working fluids, no sound or gas pollution, no working position restrictions, no scale effect, long working lifespan, and wide applications in aerospace, cogeneration, and wearable devices [7,8,9,10,11,12,13].…”

Polyamide 6/Poly(vinylidene fluoride) Blend-Based Nanocomposites with Enhanced Rigidity: Selective Localization of Carbon Nanotube and Organoclay

“…Both nanofillers facilitated the nucleation of PVDF, but CNT exhibited a higher nucleation efficiency than OMMT. In addition to the binary polymer/nanofiller nanocomposites, polymer blend-based multicomponent nanocomposites with superior mechanical and thermal properties due to the modification on phase morphology were reported [15][16][17][18].…”

Modulating Carrier Type for Enhanced Thermoelectric Performance of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes/Polyethyleneimine Composites

“…Recently, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and their composites have been intensively studied and utilized as TE materials for energy harvesting due to their mechanical flexibility, light-weight characteristics, and facile processability [11,12,13,14,15]. By improving the dispersion of CNTs in CNT/polymer composites, the TE performance of the composite could be effectively enhanced.…”