Flexible films of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):Poly(styrenesulfonate)/SnS nanobelt thermoelectric composites

Abstract Organic polymer/inorganic thermoelectric (TE) composites are emerging green energy materials for diverse applications including harvesting waste or low-quality heat, local cooling, sensing and wearable electronics. Here, we report flexible films of new TE composites by employment of SnS nanobelt into polymer matrix. First, the SnS nanobelts with high purity were prepared by a convenient hydrothermal process. Then, the poly (3,4-ethylenediox-ythiophene): poly (styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS)/SnS nanobelt composites were obtained by a solution mixing procedure aided by ultrasonication. The structure and morphology of the SnS nanobelts as well as the PEDOT:PSS/SnS composites were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field-emission scanning electroscopic (FESEM) techniques. The effects of the SnS content and the dispersing agent (organic solvent) on the dispersion state and the TE performance for the composites were investigated. The highest power factor at room temperature reached 27.8 ± 0.5 μW m−1 K−2 for the PEDOT:PSS/SnS nanobelt composite prepared in N,N-Dimethylformamide. The present study opens a novel avenue to exploit of excellent polymer TE composites by introduction of inorganic nanoparticles with large Seebeck coefficients.