Engineers have developed cutting-edge technology that may considerably increase the flexibility and efficiency of thermoelectric generators to unprecedented levels.
This breakthrough has the potential to revolutionise the area of energy generation by leveraging the power of 'mechanical metamaterials'.
These materials belong to a distinct category and thus are not present in nature. They are manufactured by carefully organising their internal structures.
Researchers from the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI) have developed a flexible, skin-attachable gasket for stretchable thermoelectric generators.
As per the official release, this development could possibly increase the efficiency of a thermoelectric generator to the “world's highest level”.
Stretchable, highly efficient thermoelectric generator gasket
A thermoelectric generator is a device that converts heat energy into electrical power using the Seebeck effect.
The Seebeck effect is a voltage differential caused by a temperature variation between two dissimilar electrical conductors or semiconductors. In a thermoelectric generator, this voltage difference is used to generate an electric current, thus producing electrical power.
The team's main goal was to develop a thermoelectric generator with better efficiency and stretchability, ideal for use on curved surfaces such as skin or hot water pipes. Conventional thermoelectric generators rely heavily on stiff ceramic printed circuit boards, which makes adaption to curved surfaces difficult.
Interestingly, the scientists increased the stretchability of thermoelectric generators by a remarkable 35% by adding a deformable gasket with a metastructure.
The use of a metastructure improves the thermoelectric generator's structural stability, allowing it to easily adapt to diverse geometries and demonstrate exceptional stretchability.
Furthermore, the efficient insulation provided by the gasket's partial air gap reduces heat loss, increasing the thermoelectric generator's efficiency. When compared to currently existing flexible thermoelectric generators, this results in a staggering 30% increase in temperature differential.
Dr Hyekyoung Choi of KERI said: "Researchers in the team not only have the know-how to develop high-performance thermoelectric materials but also have modularsation technology dedicated to energy harvesting and technology related to stable self-powered devices."
Choi added: "With such convergence research, we were able to create synergy and consider everything from core technology development, and testing to real-life applications."
The findings were reported recently in the journal Advanced Energy Materials.