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Authors
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Paleo, A. J. ; Krause, B. ; Cerqueira, M. F. ; Melle-Franco, M. ; Pötschke, P. ; Rocha, A. M.
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Title
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Thermoelectric properties of polypropylene carbon nanofiber melt-mixed composites: exploring the role of polymer on their Seebeck coefficient
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Date
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21.06.2021
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Abstract
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The effect of polypropylene (PP) on the Seebeck coefficient (S) of carbon nanofibers (CNFs) in melt-extruded PP composites filled with up to 5 wt. % of CNFs was analyzed in this study. The as-received CNFs present an electrical conductivity of ~320·S·m-1 and an interesting phenomenon of showing negative S-values of -5.5·µVK-1, with 10-2·µW/mK2 as the power factor (PF). In contrast, the PP/CNF composites with 5 wt. % of CNFs showed lower conductivities of ~50·S·m-1, less negative S-values of -3.8·µVK-1, and a PF of 7·×·10-4·µW/mK2. In particular, the change in the Seebeck coefficient of the PP/CNF composites is explained by a slight electron donation from the outer layers of the CNFs to the PP molecules, which could reduce the S-values of the as-received CNFs. Our study indicates that even insulating polymers such as PP may have a quantifiable effect on the intrinsic Seebeck coefficient of carbon-based nanostructures, and this fact should also be taken into consideration to tailor conductive polymer composites with the desired thermoelectric (TE) properties.
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Journal
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Polymer Journal 53 (2021) 1145-1152
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DOI
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https://doi.org/10.1038/S41428-021-00518-7
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