Structure and thermoelectric behavior of polyaniline-based/CNT-composite

Thermoelectric materials have the capability of harvesting and converting the heat wasted into useful electrical current. Polymer thermoelectric composites have recently received attention and experienced a rapid development because of their low density, versatility, ease of synthesis and processing and low thermal conductivity. Herein, we report on synthesis and characterization of pristine polyaniline and polyaniline/carbon nanotubes network nanocomposite. In the preparation, aniline was polymerized via a facile chemical oxidative polymerization process, in which 30 wt% multiwall carbon nanotubes were in situ incorporated. Both pristine polyaniline and its composite were examined by XRD. For their thermoelectric performance, Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity were characterized using a home-built setup operated by keithley Multimeter (Model:2000). The fabricated composite exhibited superior increase in Seebeck coefficient and power factor to reach 141 mu V/K and 0.004 mu W/mK(2), respectively at 95 degrees C. The corresponding I-V curves were further measured. The current was found to increase substantially to reach 2.2 mA at 1 V; almost one order of magnitude higher when compared to that of the pristine polyaniline sample.