Sammendrag
This work reports on an experimental investigation of the potential of using selected commercially available organic conductive polymers as active ingredients in thermocouples printed on textiles. Poly(3, 4- ethylenedioxythiophene): poly(4 styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) and polyaniline (PANI) were screen printed onto woven cotton textile. The influence of multiple thermocycles between 235 K (+38°C) and 350 K (+77°C) on resistivity and thermoelectric properties was examined. The Seebeck coefficients of PEDOT:PSS and PANI were found to be about 18 μV/K and 15 μV/K, respectively, when metal-polymer thermocouples were realized by combining the polymer with copper. When polymer-polymer thermocouples were formed by combining PEDOT:PSS and PANI, a thermoelectric voltage of about 10 μV/K was observed. A challenge recognized in the experiments is that the generated voltage exhibited drift and