High Thermoelectric Power Generation by SWCNT/PPy Core Shell Nanocomposites

Abstract

Polypyrrole (PPy) is a conducting polymer with attractive thermoelectric (TE) properties. It is simple to fabricate and modify its morphology for enhanced electrical conductivity. However, such improvement is still limited to considerably enhancing TE performance. In this case, a single-wall carbon nanotube (SWCNT), which has ultrathin diameters and exhibits semi-metallic electrical conductivity, might be a proper candidate to be combined with PPy as a core shell one-dimensional (1D) nanocomposite for higher TE power generation. In this work, core shell nanocomposites based on SWCNT/PPy were fabricated. Various amounts of pyrrole (Py), which are monomer sources for PPy, were coated on SWCNT, along with methyl orange (MO) as a surfactant and ferric chloride as an initiator. The optimum value of Py for maximum TE performance was determined. The results showed that the SWCNT acted as a core template to direct the self-assembly of PPy and also to further enhance TE performance. The TE power factor, PF, and figure of merit, zT, values of the pure PPy were initially recorded as ~1 µW/mK2 and 0.0011, respectively. These values were greatly increased to 360 µW/mK2 and 0.09 for the optimized core shell nanocomposite sample. The TE power generation characteristics of the fabricated single-leg module of the optimized sample were also investigated and confirmed these findings. This enhancement was attributed to the uniform coating and good interaction between PPy polymer chains and walls of the SWCNT through π–π stacking. The significant enhancement in the TE performance of SWCNT/PPy nanocomposite is found to be superior compared to those reported in similar composites, which indicates that this nanocomposite is a suitable and scalable TE material for TE power generation.

Polymer/Carbon Composites with Versatile Interfacial Interactions for High Performance Carbon‐Based Thermoelectrics: Principles and Applications

“…ZT notes PEDOT:PSS/SWCNT [72] PEDOT:PSS/C-CNT [21] 737.7 82.9 504.8 --energy filtering PEDOT:PSS/SWCNT [140] ≈1300 ≈59 464 --electrical percolation, energy filtering PEDOT:PSS/PEDOT NWs/ SWCNT [132] 2503.5 37.5 ≈352 --energy filtering PEDOT/SWCNT [141] 850 52 253.7 --polymer chains ordering PEDOT-Tos/a-SWCNT [142] 4731 [148] 331.25 ≈47 73.33 0.023 0.95 polymer chains ordering, phonon scattering PANI/PDG [20] 14.5 604 529 0.22* 0.74* electrical percolation PANI/S-N co-doped rGO [149] 0.3106 −1750 95.49 0.51 0.056 energy filtering PANI/graphene [89] 814 26 55 --polymer chains ordering PANI/3DG [97] 394.1 45.6 81.9 --polymer chains ordering, energy filtering PPy/SWCNT [150] 10671 ≈18.5 365.2 ≈0.54* 0.203* polymer chains ordering PPy/SWCNT [151] 1788. PMEET/SWCNT [26] 699 ≈40 121 --electrical percolation poly-Schiff base/SWCNT [48] 411.8 43.4 77.7 --energy filtering MEH-PPV/SWCNT [44] 415 29 32.8 --electrical percolation PNDI2OD-T2/SWCNT [49] 312.5 −30 27.7 --energy filtering, PNDI2OD-T2: naphthalene diimide−bithiophene copolymer…”

High Power Factor of Ag2Se/Ag/Nylon Composite Films for Wearable Thermoelectric Devices

“…TE materials are divided into two categories: organic and inorganic. Organic TE materials, including polypyrrole, polyaniline, and PEDOT:PSS, are composed of carbon-based molecules that present flexibility and low thermal conductivity [ 18 , 19 , 20 ]. Even though organic TE materials have intriguing properties, their low ZT values mean that they are not yet competitive with inorganic TE materials.…”