Thermoelectric PANI/TeNWs Fiber Based Microsensor for Passive Temperature and Active Chemical Sensing

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Sensor Technology

Background:

• Integrating multiple sensing modalities in microscale fibers is challenging.
• Existing sensors often compromise performance when combining functionalities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a continuous wet-spinning process for multifunctional microfibers.
• To integrate polyaniline (PANI) with tellurium nanowires (TeNWs) for combined sensing capabilities.

Main Methods:

• Continuous wet-spinning of PANI/TeNWs composite fibers.
• Characterization of thermoelectric properties (Seebeck coefficient, power factor).
• Evaluation of chemical sensing performance (pH response, ammonia detection).

Main Results:

• Optimized composite fiber (60 wt.% TeNWs) achieved a Seebeck coefficient of 59.9 µV K⁻¹ and power factor of 9.2 µW m⁻¹ K⁻².
• Demonstrated passive temperature monitoring with a 1 K detection limit.
• Exhibited Nernstian pH response (59.25 mV pH⁻¹) and rapid ammonia detection (0.96 s at 50 ppm).

Conclusions:

• Successfully integrated thermoelectric and chemical sensing in a single microfiber.
• The PANI/TeNWs microfiber offers energy-autonomous temperature sensing and high-performance chemical detection.
• Potential applications in precision medicine and environmental safety monitoring.