Abstract:
The need for efficient and renewable ways to generate electricity is increasing as the world
faces an ongoing energy crisis. Energy harvesting technologies like Thermoelectrochemical cells (TECs) are promising solution in this scenario which converts heat
into electricity. This research explores the development and performance analysis of gel
polymer electrolytes (GPEs) for TECs, focusing on a composite made from carboxymethyl
cellulose (CMC), polyaniline (PANI), potassium ferricyanide (K₃[Fe(CN)₆]) and
potassium ferrocyanide (K₄[Fe(CN)₆]), which is incorporated into copper (Cu) electrodes
for use in wearable devices. The electrochemical testing of the Gel electrolyte was
performed which involved four different compositions, specifically with 0.01g, 0.02g,
0.03g, and 0.04g of polyaniline (PANI) relative to carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC).
Among these, the composition with 0.03g PANI exhibited the best performance and was
subsequently selected for thermoelectric cell (TEC) testing. The p-type TECs demonstrated
a significant increase in its seebeck coefficient 4.02mV/K at the temperature difference
(ΔT) 30°C. The device showed a stable thermosensitive response over a wide temperature
range of 5°C to 35°C, well-suited for typical operating conditions of wearable electronics
and sensors. At ΔT = 30°C, the TEC produced a voltage output of 141mV. Furthermore,
connecting two p-type TECs in series resulted in a cumulative boost in the overall voltage
output.
