Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Optimization of mixed grain size structure for enhancement of thermoelectric figure of merit in p-type BiSbTe-based alloys

  • Innovation in Materials Processing
  • Published:
Journal of Materials Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

A recent focus in thermoelectric research is to boost the thermoelectric figure of merit of existing materials through different approaches for energy conversion and cooling applications at room temperature. In this work, we have developed mixed-grain (coarse and fine) structured B0.5Sb1.5Te3 samples by combining water atomization, ball milling, and spark plasma sintering (SPS). It was observed that the grains in the mixed powder samples were well compacted and oriented randomly. However, there were pores on the surface of the grains that increased with the inclusion of fine particles. The mixed samples comprised coarse (submicron to several tens of microns) and fine grains (1.8 µm). It is found that the optimized mixed-grain structured (80C:20F) sample exhibited a synchronized enhancement of Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity due to the increased effective mass (m*) and carrier concentration. Consequently, the power factor (PF) increased to 4.2 × 10–3 W/mK2 at 300 K. The peak ZT of 1.16 at 350 K and average ZT of 1.12 in the range of 300–500 K were obtained for the optimized mixed-grain structured sample.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
Figure 5
Figure 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. BCS Inc. (2008) Waste heat recovery: technologies and opportunities in U.S. industry. US Dept. of Energy (DOE)

  2. Wei Z, Wang C, Zhang J et al (2020) Precise regulation of carrier concentration in thermoelectric BiSbTe alloys via magnetic doping. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 12:20653–20663

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Zhao Y, Nie X, Sun C et al (2021) Excellent thermoelectric performance from in situ reaction between Co nanoparticles and BiSbTe flexible films. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 13:58746–58753

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Li X, Cai K, Gao M, Du Y, Shen S (2021) Recent advances in flexible thermoelectric films and devices. Nano Energy 89:106309

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Gayner C, Kar KK (2016) Recent advances in thermoelectric materials. Prog Mater Sci 83:330–382

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Lee CH, Dharmaiah P, Kim DH, Yoon DK, Kim TH, Song SH, Hong SJ (2022) Synergistic optimization of the thermoelectric and mechanical properties of large-size homogeneous Bi0.5Sb1.5Te3 bulk samples via carrier engineering for efficient energy harvesting. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 14:10394–10406

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Toprak SM, Stiewe C, Platzek D et al (2004) The impact of nanostructuring on the thermal conductivity of thermoelectric CoSb3. Adv Funct Mater 14:1189–1196

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Fu C, Zhu T, Pei Y et al (2014) High band degeneracy contributes to high thermoelectric performance in p-type half-Heusler compounds. Adv Energy Mater 4:1400600

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Hong M, Chen ZG, Yang L et al (2018) Achieving zT > 2 in p-type AgSbTe2−xSex alloys via exploring the extra light valence band and introducing dense stacking faults. Adv Energy Mater 8:1702333

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Dharmaiah P, Nagarjuna C, Sharief P, Hong SJ (2021) Synergetic effects of co-dispersed Cu and insulating HfO2 nanoparticles enabled high thermoelectric figure of merit in Bi0.5Sb1.5Te3 composites. Appl Surf Sci 556:149783

  11. Hwang JY, Kim J, Kim HS et al (2018) Effect of dislocation arrays at grain boundaries on electronic transport properties of bismuth antimony telluride: Unified strategy for high thermoelectric performance. Adv Energy Mater 8:1800065

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Yang G, Sang L, Yun FF et al (2021) Significant enhancement of thermoelectric figure of merit in BiSbTe-based composites by incorporating carbon microfiber. Adv Funct Mater 31:2008851

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Kim SI, Lee KH, Mun HA et al (2015) Dense dislocation arrays embedded in grain boundaries for high-performance bulk thermoelectrics. Science 348:109–114

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Xie W, He J, Kang HJ et al (2010) Identifying the specific nanostructures responsible for the high thermoelectric performance of (Bi, Sb)2Te3 nanocomposites. Nano Lett 10:3283–3289

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Yu Y, He DS, Zhang SY et al (2017) Simultaneous optimization of electrical and thermal transport properties of Bi0.5Sb1.5Te3 thermoelectric alloy by twin boundary engineering. Nano Energy 37:203–213

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Kim EB, Dharmaiah P, Lee KH et al (2019) Enhanced thermoelectric properties of Bi0.5Sb1.5Te3 composites with in-situ formed senarmontite Sb2O3 nanophase. J Alloys Compd 777:703–711

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Li J, Tan Q, Li JF et al (2013) BiSbTe-based nanocomposites with high ZT: the effect of SiC nanodispersion on thermoelectric properties. Adv Funct Mater 23:4317–4323

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Dou YC, Qin XY, Li D et al (2015) Enhanced thermoelectric performance of BiSbTe-based composites incorporated with amorphous Si3N4 nanoparticles. RSC Adv 5:34251–34256

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Wu G, Yan Z, Wang X et al (2021) Optimized thermoelectric properties of Bi0.48Sb1.52Te3 through AgCuTe doping for low-grade heat harvesting. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 13:57514–57520

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Zhao LD, Zhang BP, Liu WS, Li JF (2009) Effect of mixed grain sizes on thermoelectric performance of Bi2Te3 compound. J Appl Phys 105:023704–023706

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Fukui T, Matsuzawa M, Funahashi R, Kosuga A (2014) Effect of mixed grain sizes on the thermoelectric properties of Ca0.9Yb0.1MnO3. J Electron Mater 43:1548–1553

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Lee MW, Dharmaiah P, Lee CH, Song SH, Lee JH, Hong SJ (2020) Recrystallization stimulated hierarchical structures for the simultaneous enhancement of seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity in Bi-Sb-Te alloys. J Alloy Compd 842:155804

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Wei H, Tang J, Xu D (2020) Effect of abnormal grain growth on thermoelectric properties of hot-pressed Bi0.5Sb1.5Te3 alloys. J Alloy Compd 817:153284

  24. Mi JL, Zhao XB, Zhu TJ, Tu JP (2007) Improved thermoelectric figure of merit in n-type CoSb3 based nanocomposites. Appl Phys Lett 91:172116

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Dharmaiah P, Kim HS, Lee CH, Hong SJ (2016) Influence of powder size on thermoelectric properties of p-type 25%Bi2Te3−75%Sb2Te3 alloys fabricated using gas-atomization and spark-plasma sintering. J Alloy Compd 686:1–8

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Hao F, Qiu P, Tang Y et al (2016) High efficiency Bi2Te3-based materials and devices for thermoelectric power generation between 100 and 300 °C. Energy Environ Sci 9:3120–3127

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Yim WM, Rosi FD (1972) Compound tellurides and their alloys for peltier cooling a review. Solid State Electron 15:1121–1140

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Kim DH, Kim C, Heo SH, Kim H (2011) Influence of powder morphology on thermoelectric anisotropy of spark-plasma-sintered Bi–Te-based thermoelectric materials. Acta Mater 59:405–411

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Yang JH, Caillat T (2006) Thermoelectric materials for space and automotive power generation. MRS Bull 31:224–229

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Korea Foundation for the Advancement of Science and Creativity (KOFAC) and funded by the Korean Government (MOE) (SBJ000033940). This work was also supported by the Korea Institute of Advancement of Technology (KIAT) and ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (P0018009).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Advanced Materials Engineering and Center for Advanced Materials and Parts of Powder (CAMP2), Kongju National University, 275, Budae-dong, Cheonan City, Chungcheongnam-do, 330-717, Republic of Korea

    Peyala Dharmaiah, Dae-Hyeon Kim, Jin-gu Kwon, Yeeun Lee, Sangwon Geum, Ga-ram Lee, Minjae Kang & Soon-Jik Hong

Authors
  1. Peyala Dharmaiah
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Dae-Hyeon Kim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Jin-gu Kwon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Yeeun Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Sangwon Geum
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Ga-ram Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Minjae Kang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Soon-Jik Hong
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Soon-Jik Hong.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

There are no conflicts of interest to declare.

Additional information

Handling Editor: M. Grant Norton.

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Supplementary Information

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary file1 (DOCX 149 kb)

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Dharmaiah, P., Kim, DH., Kwon, Jg. et al. Optimization of mixed grain size structure for enhancement of thermoelectric figure of merit in p-type BiSbTe-based alloys. J Mater Sci 57, 18131–18141 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-022-07532-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-022-07532-x

Search

Navigation