Thermoelectric (TE) material can interconvert heat and electricity. This feature has given rise to incredible technologies such as energy generators for space exploration. Above all, it has enormous potential for the recovery of waste heat. A good opportunity for the green transition: if it can be used on large surfaces without losing efficiency, the thermoelectric material could give a huge boost to the solar sector.
Now, the researchers of the KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm have developed an important innovation. This is a promising thermoelectric coating: a true 'ink' for devices that generate heat below 100 degrees Celsius.
A thermoelectric ink
Research (I link it to you here), was led by Muhammad Toprak, professor of materials chemistry at KTH. The focus? The design and development of hybrid thermoelectric materials for ambient temperature operations. Each tested device integrated the thermoelectric material with solid-state semiconductors.
The results provide a low-cost method of producing and applying TE coatings on a large scale. According to the researchers, the thermoelectric coating can be used to create electricity from any heat-dispersing surface. It can be particularly useful for many applications. First of all for flexible energy recovery technologies that have to operate over a wide area, such as personal medical devices and the Internet of Things.
New awareness and more energy
Swedish research is also making progress in gaining a better understanding of the capabilities and limitations of the materials used in the design of this new era of the 'hybrid thermoelectric'.
"Short term," says Toprak, “there will be a tangible impact on the IoT and other low-power applications. In wearable electronics, a thermoelectric ink could even replace the batteries ”.
In the long run, working on more sustainable mixes of thermoelectric material and biopolymers (such as cellulose and lignocellulose, or plant matter), the use of this technology in large areas will have a huge impact.
It will be a complementary means of collecting (or recovering) energy. I can't wait to appreciate the first applications!
