Preparation, characterization and thermoelectric properties of a polyaniline matrix Ge0.94Pb0.01Bi0.05Te composite

Abstract In times of industrialization, much low temperature waste heat is released and no viable technology exists which can produce electricity from this low energy density heat. So the long sought-after class thermoelectric (TE) material which directly achieves conversion between thermal and electrical energy obtains much attention. However, the traditional TE materials are alloys of inorganic materials and expensive, and most of them have some level of toxicity, so the research on organic TE materials is very important. The polyaniline (PANI, i. e., a conducting polymer) and PANI matrix Ge0.94Pb0.01Bi0.05Te composite material were prepared. The chemical structure, microstructure and thermoelectric properties were investigated by FTIR, XRD, SEM and ZEM. Results showed that the molecule chains in the PANI were not ranged very neatly, and Ge0.94Pb0.01Bi0.05Te in the composite material formed interconnected network as 20 wt.-% Ge0.94Pb0.01Bi0.05Te was added. Power factor of the composite material increase...