INS13-1103
Engineering Ionic–Electronic Carrier Balance for High Thermoelectric Performance in Polymeric Mixed Conductors
Topic
S13. Korea-Germany Polymer Symposium 2026: “Pioneering the Future of Polymeric Materials and Bridging Innovation in Sustainable Technologies”
When and Where
Sep 29, 2026
15:50 - 16:15
Room 203
Session Chairs
Jürgen Rühe
Presenter(s)
Eunkyoung Kim (Yonsei University)
Co-Author(s)
Abstract
Recent advances in polymeric mixed ionic–electronic conductors (MIECs) have opened new opportunities to investigate how ionic and electronic carriers collectively contribute to thermoelectric energy conversion. While previous studies have largely emphasized increasing either ionic or electronic conductivity, comparatively little attention has been paid to how their relative contributions govern thermoelectric performance. Here, we present how polymeric MIECs can be optimized for enhanced thermoelectric performance, demonstrating that balancing ionic and electronic carrier contributions, rather than maximizing either conductivity alone, is the critical factor governing thermoelectric performance. Representative examples include polymer composites based on poly(2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid) and graphene, in which graphene content and environmental humidity effectively regulate mixed charge transport. The optimized compositions exhibited a high total Seebeck coefficient under a temperature difference of only 5 K, together with an electronic Seebeck coefficient among the highest reported for polymeric mixed ionic–electronic conductors. Notably, both the ionic and electronic thermoelectric responses were simultaneously enhanced within the same material. Furthermore, transference numbers and the conductivity ratio (σe/σi) were identified as quantitative descriptors linking mixed charge transport to thermoelectric voltage and power generation. These findings provide new insights into the interplay between ionic and electronic transport in polymeric MIECs and suggest that engineering carrier balance is an effective approach for developing high-performance polymer thermoelectric materials for harvesting low-grade heat.
