Domestic researchers have developed thermoelectric power generation technology using carbon nanotubes that are flexible and can easily change shape.
The Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology noted on the 13th that a research team led by Han Mi-jeong and Kang Young-hoon at the Institute's Chemical Materials Research Center has developed a flexible thermoelectric generator that maximizes thermoelectric performance by combining carbon nanotubes with bismuth-antimony-telluride (BiSbTe) in a porous foam form.
Thermoelectric materials are materials that can convert between heat and electricity. They generate electricity by utilizing the temperature difference between objects. When there is a temperature difference between one point of an object and another point, it generates electricity by using the principle of charge moving from the hot side to the cold side.
Many research institutions are developing power generation technology using thermoelectric materials to respond to climate change and improve energy efficiency. Most of them create thermoelectric materials using metal-based inorganics, but in this case, flexibility is low, limiting their application. There were disadvantages in using them for wearable electronic devices that are worn on the human body.
In contrast, thermoelectric materials using organic materials like carbon nanotubes are easy to deform due to their flexible characteristics, but they have low thermoelectric performance and durability.
The research team developed a unique technology to create carbon nanotubes in a voluminous structure while maintaining their flexibility, aiming to overcome the low performance limitations. Existing organic thermoelectric materials are made in a film form, which is thinly solidified from liquid. Instead of using this method, the research team filled a mold with material powder and applied heat, resulting in a sponge-like solidification after a few hours.
They uniformly doped the thermoelectric material into a sponge-like structure with numerous holes. As a result, durability improved compared to the film form, and thermoelectric performance was also enhanced. The thermoelectric performance index increased by 5.7 times compared to the existing film form, and there was almost no performance degradation even after over 10,000 repeated bending tests. Compared to the existing method of producing carbon nanotubes, which takes more than 3 days, they were able to produce high-performance thermoelectric materials in just 4 hours, leading to increased productivity.
The research team evaluated, "This study is a significant achievement in overcoming the limitations of existing thermoelectric power generation materials and advancing flexible energy harvesting technology." The team plans to improve the doping process for commercialization by 2030.
References
Carbon Energy(2025), DOI : https://doi.org/10.1002/cey2.650