(Press-News.org) HOUSTON, May 16, 2024 – Thermoelectric materials could play an important role in the clean energy transition, as they can produce electricity from sources of heat that would otherwise go to waste without generating additional greenhouse gases or requiring large up-front investment. But their promise has been slowed by the fact that most current thermoelectric materials don’t efficiently produce enough power to be useful for many practical applications.
The search for new, more efficient materials involving complex chemical compositions has been labor-intensive, requiring experimental testing of each proposed new multi-material composition, and has often involved the use of toxic or rare elements. In a paper published Thursday, May 16, in the journal Science, researchers from the University of Houston and Rice University report a new approach to predict the realization of band convergence in a series of materials and, after demonstrating that one so-designed material, a p-type Zintl compound, would offer highly efficient thermoelectric performance, fabricated a thermoelectric module. They reported a heat-to-electricity conversion efficiency exceeding 10% at a temperature difference of 475 kelvin, or about 855 degrees Fahrenheit.
Zhifeng Ren, director of the Texas Center for Superconductivity at UH (TcSUH) and corresponding author for the paper, said the materials’ performance remained stable for more than two years.
While a variety of approaches have been used to improve efficiency, a concept known as electronic band convergence has gained attention for its potential to improve thermoelectric performance. “It is normally difficult to get high performance from thermoelectric materials because not all of the electronic bands in a material contribute,” Ren said. “It’s even more difficult to make a complex material where all of the bands work at the same time in order to get the best performance.”
For this work, he said, the scientists first focused on devising a calculation to determine how to build a material in which all the different energy bands can contribute to the overall performance. They then demonstrated that the calculation worked in practice as well as in theory, building a module to further verify the obtained high performance at the device level.
Band convergence is considered a good approach for improving thermoelectric materials because it increases the thermoelectric power factor, which is related to the actual output power of the thermoelectric module. But until now, discovering new materials with strong band convergence was time-consuming and resulted in many false starts. “The standard approach is trial and error,” said Ren, who is also the Paul C.W. Chu and May P. Chern Endowed Chair in Condensed Matter Physics at UH. “Instead of doing a lot of experiments, this method allows us to eliminate unnecessary possibilities that won’t give better results.”
To efficiently predict how to create the most effective material, the researchers used a high-entropy Zintl alloy, YbxCa1-xMgyZn2-ySb2, as a case study, designing a series of compositions through which band convergence was achieved simultaneously in all of the compositions.
Ren described how it works like this: If a team of 10 people try to lift an object, the taller members will carry most of the load while the shorter members do not contribute as much. In band convergence, the goal is to make all the band team members more similar – tall band members would be shorter, in this example, and short members taller – so all can contribute to carrying the overall load.
Here, the researchers started with four parent compounds containing five elements in total – ytterbium, calcium, magnesium, zinc and antimony – running calculations to determine which combinations of the parent compounds could reach band convergence. Once that was determined, they chose the best among these high-performance compositions to construct the thermoelectric device.
“Without this method, you would have to experiment and try all possibilities,” said Xin Shi, a UH graduate student in Ren’s group and lead author on the paper. “There’s no other way you can do that. Now, we do a calculation first, we design a material, and then make it and test it.”
The calculation method could be used for other multi-compound materials, too, allowing researchers to use this approach to create new thermoelectric materials. Once the proper parent compounds are identified, the calculation determines what ratio of each should be used in the final alloy.
In addition to Ren and Shi, the paper’s authors include Dr. Shaowei Song, a researcher at the Texas Center for Superconductivity, and Dr. Guanhui Gao from the Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering at Rice. Gao is now at UH.
About the University of Houston
The University of Houston is a Carnegie-designated Tier One public research university recognized with a Phi Beta Kappa chapter for excellence in undergraduate education. UH serves the globally competitive Houston and Gulf Coast Region by providing world-class faculty, experiential learning and strategic industry partnerships. Located in the nation's fourth-largest city and one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse regions in the country, UH is a federally designated Hispanic- and Asian-American-Serving institution with enrollment of more than 47,000 students.
END
A powerful tool speeds success in achieving highly efficient thermoelectric materials
Method allows researchers to boost band convergence without traditional time-consuming trial-and-error approach
2024-05-16
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Oropharyngeal cancer staging health record extraction using AI
2024-05-16
About The Study: The results of this study suggest that artificial intelligence may be associated with enhanced patient care and oncological decision-making in patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma through detection of localized versus advanced cancer stages. Further model refinement and external validation with electronic health records at different institutions are necessary to improve algorithm accuracy and clinical applicability.
Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Antoine Eskander, M.D., email antoine.eskander@mail.utoronto.ca.
To access the ...
Airborne technology developed at USC brings new hope to map shallow aquifers in Earth’s most arid deserts
2024-05-16
Water shortages are expanding across the Earth. This is particularly acute in desert areas of the Middle East that are subject to both drought and extreme conditions such as flooding. As a result of these uncertainties, there is an increasing reliance on shallow aquifers to mitigate these shortages. However, the characteristics of these aquifers remain poorly understood due to the reliance on sporadic well logs for their management.
To address this challenge a team of researchers at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering along with collaborators ...
Mount Sinai experts to present new research on preeclampsia, preterm birth, doula care and more at the 2024 ACOG Annual Clinical and Scientific Meeting
2024-05-16
Women’s health experts from the Raquel and Jaime Gilinski Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai will present new research at the 2024 American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) Annual Clinical and Scientific Meeting in San Francisco from May 17–19. Please let me know if you would like to coordinate an interview about their forthcoming presentations. Mount Sinai obstetricians and gynecologists are also available to comment on breaking news and other trending topics on prenatal care and women’s ...
Normothermic perfusion system extends life of organs waiting for transplant
2024-05-16
In the United States, about 30-40% of donor hearts aren't considered for transplant due to inadequate function in the donor.
This creates a drop in the number of donated hearts that are available to be matched with someone who needs a heart transplant.
A team at University of Michigan Health led by Alvaro Rojas-Pena, M.D., a research investigator with the section of transplantation surgery at University of Michigan Health has spent the past eight years looking at better ways to transport organs for donation, specifically hearts, to improve the number of organs ...
Study: Large language models can’t effectively recognize users’ motivation, but can support behavior change for those ready to act
2024-05-16
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Large language model-based chatbots have the potential to promote healthy changes in behavior. But researchers from the ACTION Lab at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have found that the artificial intelligence tools don’t effectively recognize certain motivational states of users and therefore don’t provide them with appropriate information.
Michelle Bak, a doctoral student in information sciences, and information sciences professor Jessie Chin reported their research in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association.
Large language model-based chatbots — also known as generative conversational agents ...
In September, securities watchdogs bark more, bite less
2024-05-16
AUSTIN, Texas -- The Securities and Exchange Commission acts as Wall Street’s traffic cop, fining companies for such infractions as securities fraud and insider trading. New research from Texas McCombs finds another parallel between the SEC and traffic enforcement: pressure to meet self-imposed quotas.
Assistant accounting professors Matthew Kubic and Sara Toynbee find that the agency files twice as many enforcement cases in September as in other months, a phenomenon they call the September spike. They also link the increase in cases to smaller fines that reduce what the government takes in from violators.
The reason for the ...
New guide demystifies participation in ALS clinical research
2024-05-16
As researchers search for new insights into Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), there is an ever-greater need for data from clinical trials and research studies. However, many people living with ALS are not certain how to get involved with clinical research, and the demographics of current ALS clinical trial participants are not representative of the full population of people living with the disease worldwide.
To address the critical need for diversity and accessibility in ALS clinical trials and research studies, the Illinois-based Les Turner ALS Foundation has published a new ...
Lurie Children’s Hospital launches first peer-reviewed journal on health advocacy
2024-05-16
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago announces the launch of the Journal of Health Advocacy (JHA), the first of its kind peer-reviewed open access journal housed within the organization’s Patrick M. Magoon Institute for Healthy Communities. This new journal bridges the gap between knowledge and action to empower individuals and groups to address real-world challenges to health equity. It opened for submissions May 1, 2024.
“Disseminating and recognizing advocacy that is so often successful ...
Ochsner Health recognized as one of America’s Best Employers for Diversity by Forbes
2024-05-16
NEW ORLEANS, La. – Ochsner Health is proud to announce its recognition as one of America’s Best Employers for Diversity for 2024. This honor, awarded by Forbes in collaboration with market research firm Statista, places Ochsner Health among the elite 500 companies leading the way in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives within the United States.
Dedicated to enhancing access and opportunities for all its employees, Ochsner Health is a frontrunner in fostering a professional environment where diversity is celebrated, and every employee is empowered to contribute ...
Sex differences in primary care–based chronic kidney disease management
2024-05-16
About The Study: This study found significant sex differences in primary care–based chronic kidney disease management among patients at a care network affiliated with an academic medical center in the U.S., with females overall receiving worse care than males. Though many differences were of small magnitude, the disparity deserves further examination.
Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Jorge A. Rodriguez, M.D., email jarodriguez1@partners.org.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Less intensive works best for agricultural soil
Arctic rivers project receives “national champion” designation from frontiers foundation
Computational biology paves the way for new ALS tests
Study offers new hope for babies born with opioid withdrawal syndrome
UT, Volkswagen Group of America celebrate research partnership
New Medicare program could dramatically improve affordability for cancer drugs – if patients enroll
Are ‘zombie’ skin cells harmful or helpful? The answer may be in their shapes
University of Cincinnati Cancer Center presents research at AACR 2025
Head and neck, breast, lung and survivorship studies headline Dana-Farber research at AACR Annual Meeting 2025
AACR: Researchers share promising results from MD Anderson clinical trials
New research explains why our waistlines expand in middle age
Advancements in muon detection: Taishan Antineutrino Observatory's innovative top veto tracker
Chips off the old block
Microvascular decompression combined with nerve combing for atypical trigeminal neuralgia
Cutting the complexity from digital carpentry
Lung immune cell type “quietly” controls inflammation in COVID-19
Fiscal impact of expanded Medicare coverage for GLP-1 receptor agonists to treat obesity
State and sociodemographic trends in US cigarette smoking with future projections
Young adults drive historic decline in smoking
NFCR congratulates Dr. Robert C. Bast, Jr. on receiving the AACR-Daniel D. Von Hoff Award for Outstanding Contributions to Education and Training in Cancer Research
Chimpanzee stem cells offer new insights into early embryonic development
This injected protein-like polymer helps tissues heal after a heart attack
FlexTech inaugural issue launches, pioneering interdisciplinary innovation in flexible technology
In Down syndrome mice, 40Hz light and sound improve cognition, neurogenesis, connectivity
Methyl eugenol: potential to inhibit oxidative stress, address related diseases, and its toxicological effects
A vascularized multilayer chip reveals shear stress-induced angiogenesis in diverse fluid conditions
AI helps unravel a cause of Alzheimer's disease and identify a therapeutic candidate
Coalition of Autism Scientists critiques US Department of Health and Human Services Autism Research Initiative
Structure dictates effectiveness, safety in nanomedicine
Mission accomplished for the “T2T” Hong Kong Bauhinia Genome Project
[Press-News.org] A powerful tool speeds success in achieving highly efficient thermoelectric materialsMethod allows researchers to boost band convergence without traditional time-consuming trial-and-error approach