Shape-Deformable Thermoelectric Carbon Nanotube Doughs

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Energy Harvesting
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Thermoelectric generators (TEGs) convert waste heat into electricity.
• Traditional TEGs are rigid and limited in application geometry.
• Developing flexible and shape-conformable thermoelectric materials is crucial for broader energy harvesting applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To fabricate shape-deformable thermoelectric materials for versatile energy harvesting.
• To demonstrate the fabrication and performance of a thermoelectric generator using these novel materials.
• To explore the potential of these materials for energy harvesting from non-flat and diverse heat sources.

Main Methods:

• Synthesized p- and n-type thermoelectric doughs by blending single-walled carbon nanotubes with liquid surfactants.
• Utilized simple shaping methods to mold the doughs into arbitrary geometries, including cube shapes.
• Constructed a vertical thermoelectric generator using eight p-n pairs of the thermoelectric doughs.

Main Results:

• The thermoelectric doughs exhibited shape-deformable and touch-healing properties.
• A vertical thermoelectric generator was successfully fabricated and tested.
• The generator achieved a maximum output power of 2.2 μW with a temperature difference (ΔT) of 15 K.

Conclusions:

• Shape-deformable thermoelectric doughs offer efficient energy harvesting capabilities.
• The material's properties allow for the fabrication of TEGs with various device geometries.
• This technology enables energy harvesting from a diverse range of non-flat heat sources.