Pregled posta

Researchers in MSU's Center for Revolutionary Materials for Solid State Energy Conversion—an Energy Frontier Research Center (EFRC) funded by the U.S. Department of Energy—are developing a thermoelectric material based on natural mineral tetrahedrites. Their work was recently published in the online journal Advanced Energy Materials.

Thermoelectric materials can be used to convert waste heat into electricity and have the potential to improve energy efficiency in industry, transportation, and everyday life.

Scientists have been working to develop new thermoelectric materials over the past 15 years, but they are faced with challenges. While several new, more efficient materials have been discovered, many of these are not suitable for large-scale applications because they are derived from rare or toxic elements, or the synthesis procedures are complex and costly.

The EFRC researchers set out to discover new thermoelectric materials that are inexpensive, environment-friendly, easy to synthesize, and composed of earth-abundant elements.