Presented on November 10, 2011, by Sanjiv Sinha, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Mechanical Science & Engineering, UIUC
Abstract: Extracting work from low quality heat (T less than 150-200 C) can positively impact energy efficiency in diverse settings but poses considerable technical challenges. Conventional fluid machines are inoperable at such temperatures and more exotic options turn out to be expensive. An alternative option is thermoelectric energy conversion that uses charge carriers in a solid as the working fluid. A team at Illinois is investigating nanostructured silicon as a thermoelectric material with the intent of reducing material costs and boosting efficiency through carefully engineered microscopic transport. Dr. Sinha described the progress with materials, device, and systems engineering as the team aims to boost efficiency to compete with existing rare-earth materials.
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