Synergistic Combination of Sb2Si2Te6 Additives for Enhanced Average ZT and Single-Leg Device Efficiency of Bi0.4Sb1.6Te3-based Composites.

Thermoelectric materials are highly promising for waste heat harvesting. Although thermoelectric materials research has expanded over the years, bismuth telluride-based alloys are still the best for near-room-temperature applications. In this work, a ≈38% enhancement of the average ZT (300-473 K) to 1.21 is achieved by mixing Bi0.4Sb1.6Te3 with an emerging thermoelectric material Sb2Si2Te6, which is significantly higher than that of most BiySb2-yTe3-based composites. This enhancement is facilitated by the unique interface region between the Bi0.4Sb1.6Te3 matrix and Sb2Si2Te6-based precipitates with an orderly atomic arrangement, which promotes the transport of charge carriers with minimal scattering, overcoming a common factor that is limiting ZT enhancement in such composites. At the same time, high-density dislocations in the same region can effectively scatter the phonons, decoupling the electron-phonon transport. This results in a ≈56% enhancement of the thermoelectric quality factor at 373 K, from 0.41 for the pristine sample to 0.64 for the composite sample. A single-leg device is fabricated with a high efficiency of 5.4% at ΔT = 164 K further demonstrating the efficacy of the Sb2Si2Te6 compositing strategy and the importance of the precipitate-matrix interface microstructure in improving the performance of materials for relatively low-temperature applications.

Functionalizing Separator by Coating a Lithiophilic Metal for Dendrite-Free Anode-free Lithium Metal Batteries.

A stable anode-free lithium metal battery (AFLMB) is accomplished by the adoption of a facile fabricated amorphous antimony (Sb)-coated separator (SbSC). The large specific surface area of the separator elevates lithium (Li)-Sb alloy kinetic, improving Li wetting ability on pristine copper current collector (Cu). When tested with LiNi0.8 Mn0.1 Co0.1 O2 (NMC811) as cathode, the full cell with SbSC demonstrates low nucleation overpotential with compact, dendrite-free and homogeneous Li plating, and exhibits a notable lithium inventory retention rate (LIRR) of 99.8 % with capacity retention of 93.6 % after 60 cycles at 0.5 C-rate. Conversely, full cells containing pristine separator/Cu (i. e., SC) and pristine separator/Sb-coated current collector (i. e., SSbC) display poor cycling performances with low LIRRs. Density functional theory corroborates the nucleation behaviours observed during in-situ half-cell Li deposition. Functionalizing polymeric separator by metallic coating in AFLMB is a novel approach in improving the cycle life of an AFLMB by promoting homogeneous Li plating behavior. This innovative approach exemplifies a promising applicability for uniform Li-plating behavior to achieve a longer cycle life in AFLMB.

N-Type Thermoelectric AgBiPbS3 with Nanoprecipitates and Low Thermal Conductivity.

Thermoelectric sulfide materials are of particular interest due to the earth-abundant and cost-effective nature of sulfur. Here, we report a new n-type degenerate semiconductor sulfide, AgBiPbS3, which adopts a Fm3̅m structure with a narrow band gap of ∼0.32 eV. Despite the homogeneous distribution of elements at the scale of micrometer, Ag2S nanoprecipitates with dimensions of several nanometers were detected throughout the matrix. AgBiPbS3 exhibits a low room-temperature lattice thermal conductivity of 0.88 W m-1 K-1, owing to the intrinsic low lattice thermal conductivity of Ag2S and the effective scattering of phonons at nanoprecipitate boundaries. Moreover, compared to AgBiS2, AgBiPbS3 demonstrates a significantly improved weighted mobility of >16 cm2 V-1 s-1 at 300 K, leading to an enhanced PF of 1.6 µW cm-1 K-2 at 300 K. The superior electrical transport in AgBiPbS3 can be attributed to the high valley degeneracy of the L point (the conduction band minimum), which is contributed by the Pb s and Pb p orbitals. Further, Ga doping is found to be effective in modulating the Fermi levels of AgBiPbS3, leading to further enhancement of PF with a PFave of 2.7 µW cm-1 K-2 in the temperature range of 300-823 K. Consequently, a relatively high ZTave of 0.22 and a peak ZT of ∼0.4 at 823 K have been achieved in 3% Ga-doped AgBiPbS3, highlighting the potential of AgBiPbS3 as an n-type thermoelectric sulfide.

Unexpected doping effects on phonon transport in quasi-one-dimensional van der Waals crystal TiS3 nanoribbons.

Doping usually reduces lattice thermal conductivity because of enhanced phonon-impurity scattering. Here, we report unexpected doping effects on the lattice thermal conductivity of quasi-one-dimensional (quasi-1D) van der Waals (vdW) TiS3 nanoribbons. As the nanoribbon thickness reduces from ~80 to ~19 nm, the concentration of oxygen atoms has a monotonic increase along with a 7.4-fold enhancement in the thermal conductivity at room temperature. Through material characterizations and atomistic modellings, we find oxygen atoms diffuse more readily into thinner nanoribbons and more sulfur atoms are substituted. The doped oxygen atoms induce significant lattice contraction and coupling strength enhancement along the molecular chain direction while have little effect on vdW interactions, different from that doping atoms induce potential and structural distortions along all three-dimensional directions in 3D materials. With the enhancement of coupling strength, Young's modulus is enhanced while phonon-impurity scattering strength is suppressed, significantly improving the phonon thermal transport.

Discordant Distortion in Cubic GeMnTe2 and High Thermoelectric Properties of GeMnTe2-x%SbTe.

GeMnTe2 adopts a cubic rock salt structure and is a promising mid-temperature thermoelectric material. The pair distribution function analysis of neutron total scattering data, however, indicates that GeMnTe2 is locally distorted from the ideal rock salt structure with Ge2+ cations being discordant and displaced ∼0.3 Å off the octahedron center. By alloying GeMnTe2 with SbTe, the carrier concentration can be tuned in GeMnTe2-x%SbTe (x = 15.1), leading to converged multiple broad valence bands and a high Seebeck coefficient of >200 µV K-1 from 300 to 823 K. The system exhibits a large density-of-state effective mass of >10 me and a high weighted mobility of 80 cm2 V-1 s-1, leading to a power factor of 15 µWcm-1 K-2 at 823 K. The composition GeMnTe2-15.1%SbTe exhibits very low lattice thermal conductivity of ∼0.5 Wm-1 K-1 at 823 K, attributed to the combination of off-centering cations in the rock salt structure, Ge/Mn positional disorder, dislocations, and abundant Ge-rich and Mn-rich nanoparticles. A ZT value of ∼1.5 can be achieved for GeMnTe2-15.1%SbTe with a ZTave of 0.96 in the temperature range of 400-823 K.

Aqueous Synthesis, Doping, and Processing of n-Type Ag2Se for High Thermoelectric Performance at Near-Room-Temperature.

Herein, we have successfully synthesized binary Ag2Se, composite Ag0:Ag2Se, and ternary Cu+:Ag2Se through an ambient aqueous-solution-based approach in a one-pot reaction at room temperature and atmospheric pressure without involving high-temperature heating, multiple-processes treatment, and organic solvents/surfactants. Effective controllability over phases and compositions/components are demonstrated with feasibility for large-scale production through an exquisite alteration in reaction parameters especially pH for enhancing and understanding thermoelectric properties. Thermoelectric ZT reaches 0.8-1.1 at near-room-temperature for n-type Ag2Se and Cu+ doping further improves to 0.9-1.2 over a temperature range of 300-393 K, which is the largest compared to that reported by wet chemistry methods. This improvement is related to the enhanced electrical conductivity and the suppressed thermal conductivity due to the incorporation of Cu+ into the lattice of Ag2Se at very low concentrations (x%Cu+:Ag2Se, x = 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0).

Upcycling Silicon Photovoltaic Waste into Thermoelectrics.

Two decades after the rapid expansion of photovoltaics, the number of solar panels reaching end-of-life is increasing. While precious metals such as silver and copper are usually recycled, silicon, which makes up the bulk of a solar cells, goes to landfills. This is due to the defect- and impurity-sensitive nature in most silicon-based technologies, rendering it uneconomical to purify waste silicon. Thermoelectrics represents a rare class of material in which defects and impurities can be engineered to enhance the performance. This is because of the majority-carrier nature, making it defect- and impurity-tolerant. Here, the upcycling of silicon from photovoltaic (PV) waste into thermoelectrics is enabled. This is done by doping 1% Ge and 4% P, which results in a figure of merit (zT) of 0.45 at 873 K, the highest among silicon-based thermoelectrics. The work represents an important piece of the puzzle in realizing a circular economy for photovoltaics and electronic waste.

Green Recycling Methods to Treat Lithium-Ion Batteries E-Waste: A Circular Approach to Sustainability.

E-waste generated from end-of-life spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) is increasing at a rapid rate owing to the increasing consumption of these batteries in portable electronics, electric vehicles, and renewable energy storage worldwide. On the one hand, landfilling and incinerating LIBs e-waste poses environmental and safety concerns owing to their constituent materials. On the other hand, scarcity of metal resources used in manufacturing LIBs and potential value creation through the recovery of these metal resources from spent LIBs has triggered increased interest in recycling spent LIBs from e-waste. State of the art recycling of spent LIBs involving pyrometallurgy and hydrometallurgy processes generates considerable unwanted environmental concerns. Hence, alternative innovative approaches toward the green recycling process of spent LIBs are essential to tackle large volumes of spent LIBs in an environmentally friendly way. Such evolving techniques for spent LIBs recycling based on green approaches, including bioleaching, waste for waste approach, and electrodeposition, are discussed here. Furthermore, the ways to regenerate strategic metals post leaching, efficiently reprocess extracted high-value materials, and reuse them in applications including electrode materials for new LIBs. The concept of "circular economy" is highlighted through closed-loop recycling of spent LIBs achieved through green-sustainable approaches.

Improved zT in Nb5Ge3-GeTe thermoelectric nanocomposite.

Robust electronic transport properties is a crucial in designing high performance thermoelectrics. A key similarity between superconductor and thermoelectric lies in their generally high electrical conductivity, even at above its superconducting temperature. In this work, we design a nanocomposite between Nb5Ge3 and GeTe-based thermoelectric to improve its thermoelectric figure of merit zT. Phase and microstructural characterization shows distinct Nb5Ge3 precipitates embed in Ge0.9Sb0.1Te matrix. In addition, experimental electronic and thermal transport analysis, together with density functional theory calculation were employed to show the synergistic effect of doping Sb and Nb5Ge3 nanocomposite approach. 10% Sb doping was found to optimize the electronic properties of the GeTe-based matrix. Further addition of 2 wt% Nb5Ge3 nanocomposite to the matrix enhances the phonon scattering, which consequently lowers the lattice thermal conductivity, which results in zT of up to 2.0 at 723 K. Such superconductor nanocomposite approach shown in this work can be employed to enhance the properties of other thermoelectric materials.

Defect engineering in thermoelectric materials: what have we learned?

Thermoelectric energy conversion is an all solid-state technology that relies on exceptional semiconductor materials that are generally optimized through sophisticated strategies involving the engineering of defects in their structure. In this review, we summarize the recent advances of defect engineering to improve the thermoelectric (TE) performance and mechanical properties of inorganic materials. First, we introduce the various types of defects categorized by dimensionality, i.e. point defects (vacancies, interstitials, and antisites), dislocations, planar defects (twin boundaries, stacking faults and grain boundaries), and volume defects (precipitation and voids). Next, we discuss the advanced methods for characterizing defects in TE materials. Subsequently, we elaborate on the influences of defect engineering on the electrical and thermal transport properties as well as mechanical performance of TE materials. In the end, we discuss the outlook for the future development of defect engineering to further advance the TE field.

Tunable Nitrogen-Doping of Sulfur Host Nanostructures for Stable and Shuttle-Free Room-Temperature Sodium-Sulfur Batteries.

Room-temperature sodium-sulfur batteries have potential in stationary applications, but challenges such as loss of active sulfur and low electrical conductivity must be solved. Nitrogen-doped nanocarbon host cathodes have been employed in metal-sulfur batteries: polar interactions mitigate the loss of sulfur, while the conductive nanostructure addresses the low conductivity. Nevertheless, these two properties run contrary to each other as greater nitrogen-doping of nanocarbon hosts is associated with lower conductivity. Herein, we investigate the polarity-conductivity dilemma to determine which of these properties have the stronger influence on cycling performance. Lower carbonization temperatures produce more pyridinic nitrogen and pyrrolic nitrogen, which from density functional theory calculations preferentially bind discharge products (Na2S and short-chain polysulfides). Despite its lower conductivity, the highly doped composite showed better Coulombic efficiency and stability, retaining a high capacity of 980 mAh g(S)-1 after 800 cycles. Our findings represent a paradigm shift where nitrogen-doping should be prioritized in designing shuttle-free, long-life sodium-sulfur batteries.

Origin of High Thermoelectric Performance in Earth-Abundant Phosphide-Tetrahedrite.

Phosphide-based thermoelectrics are a relatively less studied class of compounds, primarily due to the presence of light elements, which result in high thermal conductivity and inherent stability problems. In this work, we present a stable phosphide-tetrahedrite, Ag6Ge10P12, which possesses the highest zT (∼0.7) among all known phosphides at intermediate temperatures (750 K). We examine the intrinsic electronic and thermal transport properties of this compound by expressing the transport properties in terms of weighted mobility (µW), transport coefficient (σE0), and material quality factor (B), from which we are able to elucidate that the origin of its high zT can be attributed to the platelike Fermi surface and high level of band multiplicity related to its complex band structure. Finally, we discuss the origin of the low lattice thermal conductivity observed in this compound using experimental sound velocity, elastic properties, and Debye-Callaway model, thus laying the foundation for similar stable phosphides as potentially earth-abundant and nontoxic intermediate-temperature thermoelectric materials.