Project Grant 2135526

This National Science Foundation Project Grant of $300,000 supports research at Temple University from February 2022 to January 2024 to advance additive manufacturing of composite materials with transverse thermoelectricity under the NSF Engineering program (CFDA 47.041). The university will study additive manufacturing techniques for producing thermoelectric semiconductors with perpendicular thermal and electrical transport properties. Such transverse thermoelectric materials could enable new device designs for recovering waste heat, solid-state cooling without refrigerants, and other applications to improve energy efficiency. The researchers will 3D print composite thermoelectric samples and examine how microstructural features influence material performance. Mathematical modeling will elucidate how anisotropy and defects impact transverse thermoelectricity. The project aims to correlate additive manufacturing parameters to microstructure and properties of transverse thermoelectric composites. Outcomes seek to promote additive manufacturing in the U.S. and establish quantitative links between fabrication, structure, and attributes of these novel materials.