Fabrication and testing of ceramic thermoelectric multi-leg module for high-temperature energy conversion

abstract

This study investigates the fabrication and performance of ceramic-based thermoelectric modules for hightemperature energy conversion, based on Ca2.93Sr0.07Co4O9 and Ca0.91Y0.03La0.03Yb0.03MnO3 p- and n-type materials. The p-type materials were prepared through attrition milling and classical sintering, while ball milling and hot uniaxial pressing were used for the n-type legs. The power factor reached 0.62 mW/(K2m) for the p-type and 0.33 mW/(K2m) for the n-type materials at 800 degrees C, being comparable to some of the best-reported values in literature. The lower thermal conductivity of n-type material (1.24 W/K/m) compared to the p-type material (1.56 W/K/m) resulted in similar ZT values for n-type (0.29) and p-type (0.43). The thermal expansion behaviour of the materials was also evaluated, demonstrating good thermal compatibility between the p- and n-type legs. The module's performance was tested at hot-side temperatures up to 900 degrees C, yielding a power density of 34 W/ m2. Moreover, the module demonstrated an energy conversion efficiency of 0.8 % (actual) and 6 % (theoretical), thereby underscoring the practical potential of these materials. Additionally, the module exhibited excellent long-term thermal stability, maintaining its performance after 2000 h of exposure at 900 degrees C and after undergoing 100 thermal cycles, demonstrating its suitability for high-temperature energy recovery applications.

keywords

POWER-GENERATION; CA3CO4O9; PERFORMANCE; EFFICIENCY

subject category

Chemistry; Materials Science; Metallurgy & Metallurgical Engineering

authors

Amirkhizi, P; Hedayati, M; Madre, MA; Dura, OJ; Torres, MA; Sotelo, A; Kovalevsky, AV; Rasekh, S

Groups

G3 - Electrochemical Materials, Interfaces and Coatings

Projects

CICECO - Aveiro Institute of Materials (UIDB/50011/2020)

CICECO - Aveiro Institute of Materials (UIDP/50011/2020)

Associated Laboratory CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials (LA/P/0006/2020)

Collaboratory for Emerging Technologies, CoLab (EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES)

acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the Gobierno de Aragon, Spain (Grupo de Investigacion T54_23R) for financial support. Sh. Rasekh acknowledges the support of the Research Employment Contract FCT-CEECIND/ 02608/2017. This work was also developed within the scope of the Ph. D. project of P. Amirkhizi (grant 2020.08051.BD funded by FCT) and the project CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials, UIDB/50011/2020 (DOI 10.54499/UIDB/50011/2020), UIDP/50011/2020 (DOI 10.54499/ UIDP/50011/2020) & LA/P/0006/2020 (DOI 10.54499/LA/P/0006/ 2020), financed by national funds through the FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC). Authors would like to acknowledge the use of Servicio General de Apoyo a la Investigacion-SAI, Universidad de Zaragoza, Spain. This article was supported by the projects UIDB/00481/2020 and UIDP/00481/2020 - Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia, DOI 10.54499/UIDB/00481/ 2020 (https://doi.org/10.54499/UIDB/00481/2020) and DOI 10.54499/UIDP/00481/2020 (https://doi.org/10.54499/UIDP/004 81/2020). M. A. Madre, M. A. Torres, and A. Sotelo acknowledge the grant CEX2023-001286-S funded by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033. This article was also supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovacion y Universidades (MICIU) /Agencia Estatal de Investigacion (AEI) , Spain. 81/2020) . M. A. Madre, M. A. Torres, and A. Sotelo acknowledge the grant CEX2023-001286-S funded by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033. This article was also supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovacion y Universidades (MICIU) /Agencia Estatal de Investigacion (AEI) , Spain.