Year

2018

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Department

Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials

Abstract

When fossil fuel resources are becoming exhausted due to huge consumption, followed by the environmental concerns according to IEA Key World energy statistics published in 2017, sustainable and environment friendly equivalent energy resources are desperately required for power generation. Thermoelectric (TE) devices have attracted extensive interest as power generators (through temperature gradient into electrical energy based on “Seebeck effect”) or cooling devices (current flows through a conducting circuit, heat is either absorbed or generated based on “Peltier effect”). Despite relatively low conversion efficiency and the high cost of TE materials, TE could be a promising alternative for power generation after being resolved some features which are under development. TE generators (TEGs) have the ability to harvest useful electrical energy from waste heat if cheap, chemically stable and efficient novel materials can be developed.

My doctoral research includes methods of making Cu2Se based thermoelectric materials, improving their TE performance by using nanotechnology engineering, and study of their chemical and physical properties.

FoR codes (2008)

091305 Energy Generation, Conversion and Storage Engineering, 091205 Functional Materials

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Unless otherwise indicated, the views expressed in this thesis are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the University of Wollongong.