A sensitized thermal cell recovered using heat

Matsushita, Sachiko; Araki, Takuma; Mei, Biao; Sugawara, Seiya; Inagawa, Yuri; Nishiyama, Junichi; Isobe, Toshihiro; Nakajima, Akira

doi:10.1039/c9ta04060a

“…We recently reported a sensitized thermal cell (STC) that is a new thermal energy conversion system [6][7][8][9][10][11] , which was inspired by the concept of a dye-sensitized thermal cell (DSSC). [12][13][14][15][16] Utilising STCs, electric power can be generated "directly" from heat via the redox reactions of electrolyte ions with thermally excited carriers in semiconductors (Fig.…”

Section: Main Textmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this work, we examined the cause of this restart and acquired a guideline for designing batteries that can generate power at the desired temperature. As a result, we successfully reduced the power generation temperature from 80 °C 19 to room temperature (RT, 30 °C). The fabricated STCs were thinner than 0.5 mm and can be rendered flexible.…”

Section: Main Textmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A Ge-based semiconductor and a copper ion-based polyelectrolyte were selected for the STC materials. 9,10,19,20 The fabricated STCs demonstrated stable power generation at 80 °C (Supporting Information (SI) 1). The open circuit voltage (VOC) of Cell-85, -114, -228, and -342 were approximately the same at 362, 373, 399 and 406 mV, respectively.…”

Section: What We Firstly Examinedmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…That is, if you measure the ionic diffusion length of the electrolyte at the temperature where you want to install the STC, and design the interelectrode distance to be several times longer than that, you can obtain an STC that would generate and restart power well. Since STC can be 'buried' in heat, it has been applied to operate liquid crystal displays at 80 °C 9 , Bluetooth communication devices on asphalt in the summer (SI 6). In principle, VOC of STC is independent of the temperature and is the difference between the Fermi level of the working electrode and the redox level of the electrolyte ions.…”

Section: Now We Can Design Favourable Stcsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Power Generation at Room Temperature

Kohata

¹

,

Obinata

²

,

Ikeda

³

et al. 2021

Preprint

Self Cite

0

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The effective utilisation of thermal energy is crucial to a world aiming at sustainable development goals. The sensitised thermal cell (STC) is a new thermal energy conversion technology, which was reported in 2017, for generating electricity via the redox reactions of electrolyte ions with thermally excited carriers in semiconductors. STC is attracting attention as a technology that could affect oil prices globally. Here, we report the successful construction of STC, which discharges and recovers well at room temperature, by studying the interelectrode and ion diffusion distances. The fabricated STC is thinner than 0.5 mm and can be rendered flexible. Further, STCs, which possess a power generation capacity of 0.1 microA, 100 mV per 1 mm2 area, and shall be installed “in” internet-of-things (IoT) devices, drainage pipes, and walls in the future.

show abstract

“…We recently reported a sensitized thermal cell (STC) that is a new thermal energy conversion system [6][7][8][9][10][11] , which was inspired by the concept of a dye-sensitized thermal cell (DSSC). [12][13][14][15][16] Utilising STCs, electric power can be generated "directly" from heat via the redox reactions of electrolyte ions with thermally excited carriers in semiconductors (Fig.…”

Section: Main Textmentioning

confidence: 99%

Power Generation at Room Temperature -How to Design of the Sensitized Thermal Cell-

Kohata

¹

,

Obinata

²

,

Ikeda

³

et al. 2021

Preprint

Self Cite

0

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The effective utilisation of thermal energy is crucial to a world aiming at sustainable development goals. The sensitised thermal cell (STC) is a new thermal energy conversion technology, which was reported in 2017, for generating electricity via the redox reactions of electrolyte ions with thermally excited carriers in semiconductors. STC is attracting attention as a technology that could affect oil prices globally. Here, we report the successful construction of STC, which discharges and recovers well at room temperature, by studying the interelectrode and ion diffusion distances. The fabricated STC is thinner than 0.5 mm and can be rendered flexible. Further, STCs, which possess a power generation capacity of 0.1 microA, 100 mV per 1 mm2 area, and shall be installed “in” internet-of-things (IoT) devices, drainage pipes, and walls in the future.

show abstract

A New Concept and Strategy for Photovoltaic and Thermoelectric Power Generation Based on Anisotropic Crystal Facet Unit

Li

¹

,

Luo

²

,

Tao

³

et al. 2020

Adv Funct Materials

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

According to the classic concept of photovoltaic devices, p-n junctions and heterojunctions are indispensable for carrier separation. Herein, for the first time, a novel concept of "anisotropic crystal facet unit" is put forward and clarified for photovoltaic and thermoelectric power generation. Specifically, an "anisotropic crystal facet unit" in monocrystalline p-Cu 2 O between the {100} and the {111} crystal faces is built, which can fulfill self-motivated carrier separation, due to their natural energy difference. The "anisotropic crystal facet unit" devices can directly and efficiently convert light and heat into electricity, where the {100} and the {111} faces act as the cathode and the anode, respectively. Moreover, hot and cold regions are unnecessary when the "anisotropic crystal facet unit" is applied in thermoelectric conversion. These findings may update the understanding of solar cells and thermoelectric cells, and blaze a new trail through the development of efficient and lowcost energy utilization technologies.

show abstract

A sensitized thermal cell recovered using heat

Abstract: A sensitized thermal cell makes it possible to obtain stable electric power by only burying the cell in a heat source and turning a switch on and off.

Cited by 16 publications

References 17 publications

Power Generation at Room Temperature

Power Generation at Room Temperature

Power Generation at Room Temperature -How to Design of the Sensitized Thermal Cell-

A New Concept and Strategy for Photovoltaic and Thermoelectric Power Generation Based on Anisotropic Crystal Facet Unit

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About