Thermoelectric properties of nanocrystalline Ca(3-x)Cu(x)Co4O9 (0 < or = x < or = 0.32) for power generation

S W Nam; Y S Lim; S M Choi; W S Seo; K Park

doi:10.1166/jnn.2011.3347

Thermoelectric properties of nanocrystalline Ca(3-x)Cu(x)Co4O9 (0 < or = x < or = 0.32) for power generation

J Nanosci Nanotechnol. 2011 Feb;11(2):1734-7. doi: 10.1166/jnn.2011.3347.

Authors

S W Nam¹, Y S Lim, S M Choi, W S Seo, K Park

Affiliation

¹ Faculty of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials Engineering, Sejong University, Seoul 143-747, Korea.

PMID: 21456279
DOI: 10.1166/jnn.2011.3347

Abstract

We successfully synthesized nano-sized Ca(3-x)Cu(x)Co4O9 (0 < or = x < or = 0.32) powders by solution combustion process. Plate-like grains and porous structure were observed in the sintered Ca(3-x)Cu(x)Co4O9 ceramics. The sintered Ca(3-x)Cu(x)Co4O9 showed a monoclinic symmetry. The electrical conductivity of the Ca(3-x)Cu(x)Co4O9 increased with increasing temperature, indicative of a semiconducting behavior. The added Cu led to a significant increase in the electrical conductivity. The Seebeck coefficient of the Cu-added Ca(3-x)Cu(x)Co4O9 was much higher than that of the Cu-free Ca3Co4O9. The highest power factor (9.99 x 10(-4) Wm(-1)K-2) was obtained for Ca2.76Cu0.24Co4O9 at 800 degrees C.