Synonyms
Energy-converting conducting polymers; Heat-to-electricity (or electricity-to-heat) conducting polymers
Definition
Thermoelectric (TE) polymers are organic highly conducting polymers that can convert heat to electricity or electricity to heat.
Introduction
Thermoelectric (TE) polymers are one type of highly conducting conjugated polymers, which can generate a temperature difference when a voltage is applied or produces a potential difference with the existence of temperature gradients. Since there is no “magic bullet” to solve all of our energy problems, thermoelectrics could be one of the possible solutions to satisfy our current or future energy needs and reduce greenhouse effect. Compared to the traditional energy-converting systems, TE devices (Fig. 1) such as power generators, heat pumps, coolers, and thermal sensors have evoked a lot of researchers’ interest due to their several advantages over traditional methods including high reliability, low weight, no need for...
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Wu, J., Zhang, Q. (2015). Thermoelectric Polymers. In: Kobayashi, S., Müllen, K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Polymeric Nanomaterials. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-29648-2_103
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-29648-2_103
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