The cooperation between the Lemmer group (KIT) and the Bunz group (Heidelberg University, Uni HD) about new materials for thermoelectric generators (TEG) is a multidisciplinary project at the interface of organic chemistry, physical chemistry and material science. Thermoelectric generators are devices for the conversion of (waste) heat to electrical power and are key components for energy recycling. Organic thermoelectric materials offer the advantage of flexibility and large area printing of the active materials, which makes them adjustable to different heat sources and more cost effective through high throughput techniques.
During the last project phase a new thiaazulenic building block was created by our synthetic team (Uni HD), polymerized in collaboration and with the know-how of the material team (KIT) and finally tested in thermoelectric generators (KIT).
We could outperform the standard literature material (PEDOT:Tos) in terms of the Seebeck coefficient (88.6 μV/K vs ca. 50.0 μV/K) and are now looking in to different doping possibilities and fine tuning of the molecular structure.
Project details
Project management
