Efficiently synthesized n-type CoSb3 thermoelectric alloys under TGZM effect

Skutterudite compounds, the structure of phonon glass electron crystal (PGEC), possess excellent thermoelectric properties. Here, temperature gradient zone melting combined with hot pressing technique (TGZM-HP) was employed to synthesize n-type skutterudite CexNi1.5Co2.5Sb12 thermoelectric material. By doping element Ce, the carrier concentration of the alloy was optimized efficiently and the total thermal conductivity declined. For the TGZM-HP Ce0.6Ni1.5Co2.5Sb12 alloy, the power factor PF reaches to 1350 mu W/(mK(2)), and the lattice thermal conductivity is dropped to 1.62 Wm(-1)K(-1) at 850 K, corresponding to an improved figure of merit ZT of 0.45. Importantly, compared with the traditional synthesis methods, this technique can precisely control the formation of thermometric phase and the preparation time is reduced remarkably.

Automated summary

Skutterudite compounds with excellent thermoelectric properties were synthesized using temperature gradient zone melting and hot pressing technique. Doping Ce element optimized the carrier concentration and reduced the total thermal conductivity, leading to improved figure of merit ZT for the alloy. The new synthesis method allows precise control over the formation of thermometric phases and significantly reduces preparation time compared to traditional methods.