Method of improving thermoelectric figure of merit of high efficiency thermoelectric materials
US8309839B2 · kind B2 · utility
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Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 30, 2004 |
| Grant date | Nov 13, 2012 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 25, 2032 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH10N10/853
- WIPO fieldMicro-structural and nano-technology
- WIPO sectorChemistry
Abstract
A method of improving the thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT) of a high-efficiency thermoelectric material is disclosed. The method includes the addition of fullerene (C60) clusters between the crystal grains of the material. It has been found that the lattice thermal conductivity (κL) of a thermoelectric material decreases with increasing fullerene concentration, due to enhanced phonon-large defect scattering. The resulting power factor (S2/ρ) decrease of the material is offset by the lattice thermal conductivity reduction, leading to enhanced ZT values at temperatures of between 350 degrees K and 700 degrees K.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.