Abstract
Novel thermoelectric oxides were developed, produced, and characterized to demonstrate their promising thermoelectric conversion potential in a thermoelectric converter. Four-leg thermoelectric oxide modules were fabricated by combining p- and n-type oxide thermoelements made of pressed polycrystalline GdCo0.95Ni0.05O3 and CaMn0.98Nb0.02O3, respectively. In these modules, the p- and n-type thermoelements were connected electrically in series and thermally in parallel. The materials were joined by electrical contacts consisting of a Ag/CuO composite material. Fairly good thermal contacts were ensured by pressing the thermoelements between alumina substrates. Cross-sections of the alumina/Ag–CuO mixture/thermoelement interface were investigated by scanning electron microscopy. The temperature distribution across the module was monitored using K-type thermocouples and a micro-infrared (IR) camera. The open-circuit voltage and the load voltages of the module were measured up to a temperature difference of ΔT = 500 K while keeping the temperature of the cold side at 300 K. The output power and internal resistance were calculated. The characteristics of the module evaluated from electrical measurements were compared with respective values of the p- and n-type leg materials. An output power of 0.04 W at ΔT = 500 K led to a power density of ~0.125 W/cm3, where the volume of thermoelectric material was determined by a cross-section of 4 mm × 4 mm and a leg length of 5 mm.
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Acknowledgements
This work was financially supported by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy and the Swiss National Foundation. We would like to thank Dr. E. Hack for the IR measurement, and S. Toggweiler for his technical and scientific support.
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Tomeš, P., Robert, R., Trottmann, M. et al. Synthesis and Characterization of New Ceramic Thermoelectrics Implemented in a Thermoelectric Oxide Module. J. Electron. Mater. 39, 1696–1703 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-010-1214-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-010-1214-4