Special Rubber with Excellent Mechanical Strength and Thermal Stability for Temperature Difference Generator...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Energy Harvesting
• Polymer Chemistry

Background:

• Thermoelectric generators (TEGs) convert waste heat and light into electricity.
• Photothermal conversion layers in TEGs are vulnerable to mechanical and thermal stress, limiting device stability.
• Developing robust photothermal materials is crucial for reliable energy harvesting.

Purpose of the Study:

• To create a high-performance elastomer for TEGs with superior mechanical properties and thermal stability.
• To investigate a multistep cross-linking strategy for material fabrication.
• To assemble and evaluate a rubber-based thermoelectric generator (R-TEG) using the developed material.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a composite elastomer using carboxylated nitrile rubber (XNBR), hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) grafts, ZnO nanofillers, and carbon black.
• Sequential integration of grafting, hydrogenation, filler incorporation, and cross-linking.
• Assembly and testing of a rubber-based thermoelectric generator (R-TEG).

Main Results:

• The optimized elastomer achieved a tensile strength of 8.1 MPa and an initial decomposition temperature of 393 °C.
• The fabricated R-TEG demonstrated stable voltage output (1.2 V) and a power density of 18.375 μW/cm² under near-infrared irradiation.
• The material exhibited excellent output performance and operational stability.

Conclusions:

• A novel multistep cross-linking strategy successfully produced a high-performance elastomer for TEGs.
• The developed R-TEG shows significant potential for efficient and stable energy harvesting.
• This work contributes to sustainable energy solutions through advanced material design for TEGs.