Mass Production of Pt Single-Atom-Decorated Bismuth Sulfide for n-Type Environmentally Friendly Thermoelectrics

Abstract

Single-atom materials are widely explored in catalysis, batteries, sensors, etc. However, limited by mass production and centimeter-scale assembly, they are rarely studied in thermoelectrics. Herein, we demonstrate a solvothermal synthesis assisted by a syringe-pump method to yield Bi 2 S 3supported Pt single-atom materials (Bi 2 S 3 −Pt 1 ) at a 10 g scale. Different from Pt n clusters, Pt 1 single atoms can increase carrier concentration at a high doping efficiency and provide a unique atomic environment to enhance carrier mobility, and an enlarged effective mass leads to an enhanced Seebeck coefficient. As a result, a high power factor (348 μW m −1 K −2 ) is achieved at 823 K. Benefiting from the scattering of phonons by Pt 1 atomic sites, a minimum thermal conductivity of 0.37 W m −1 K −1 is achieved. Consequently, the Bi 2 S 3 −0.5 wt % Pt 1 realizes a record-high zT of ∼0.75 at 823 K, being among the best in the state-of-the-art n-type environmentally friendly metal sulfides. The enhancement of the carrier mobility and suppression of the thermal conduction by the unique Pt 1 single atoms will inspire various fields, as exemplified by electronic devices and thermal management.

Single-atom thermoelectric materials: a new opportunity

“…Single-atom materials (SAMs), characterized by atomically dispersed metal atoms and well-defined coordination structures on solid substrates, have potential applications in the field of thermoelectrics. Our group has designed a single-atom thermoelectric material consisting of environmental-friendly bismuth sulfide as the matrix material and precious metal platinum dispersed on the matrix, using a combination of a solvothermal synthesis method and a syringe pump method [18] . samples [18] .…”

“…Our group has designed a single-atom thermoelectric material consisting of environmental-friendly bismuth sulfide as the matrix material and precious metal platinum dispersed on the matrix, using a combination of a solvothermal synthesis method and a syringe pump method [18] . samples [18] . Copyright 2022, American Chemical Society.…”

“…It is expected that the isolated Pt 1 on Bi 2 S 3 substrate would influence the thermoelectric properties. [18] . Copyright 2022, American Chemical Society.…”

“…2 (a) The lattice thermal conductivity and correspondingly simulated results. (b) The ZT value of Bi 2 S 3 substrate and Bi 2 S 3 −Pt samples[18] . Copyright 2022, American Chemical Society.…”

Strong charge carrier scattering at grain boundaries of PbTe caused by the collapse of metavalent bonding

“…We will exemplify this for PbTe, where its performance is determined by the dimensionless thermoelectric figure-of-merit, defined as ZT = S 2 σT/κ, where S is the Seebeck coefficient, σ the electrical conductivity, T the absolute temperature, and κ the thermal conductivity 16 . These parameters are strongly interrelated and often show opposite trends 17 . A large σ, for example, is usually accompanied by a large κ of materials.…”