Abstract
Interest in waste heat recovery using thermoelectricity has increased in recent decades. To date, most such research and development has focused on high-performance and/or low-cost materials. However, for practical applications, modules based on these materials are needed. This work presents the development and optimization of modules based on the low-cost Fe2VAl Heusler compound. It depicts a global analysis of the assembly in terms of the microstructure of the joint, the contact resistances, and the module performance. Based on this analysis, a generic method for developing joining solutions for new thermoelectric materials is proposed. Using this method, the diffusion bonding technique leading to electrical contact resistance of 5 × 10−9 Ω m2 is highlighted and a thermoelectric module with power density above 500 W m−2 for a temperature difference of 200 K developed.
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Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge support from the Walloon Region through funding of the GTherm project. The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Wallonia are also gratefully acknowledged for financial support of the research project (T-REX– EQUIDER - ECV12020010884F-830033) in the frame of the ‘‘Convergence programme.’’
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Roy, G., Van Der Rest, C., Heymans, S. et al. Global Analysis of Influence of Contacts on Heusler-Based Thermoelectric Modules. J. Electron. Mater. 48, 5390–5402 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-019-07137-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-019-07137-2