Context
Scientists have found a new Lead (Pb) free material, which can efficiently convert waste heat to power small home equipment and automobiles.
What is the new Lead (Pb) free material?
- The new material is called Cadmium (Cd) doped Silver Antimony Telluride (AgSbTe2).
- It can efficiently allow recovery of electricity from waste heat marking a paradigm shift in the thermoelectric puzzle.
- It can convert waste heat to power our small home equipment and automobiles.
Why utilization of waste energy is important?
- Energy conversion is not a very efficient process.
- Only a small fraction of energy that is used is actually productive. The rest of it becomes waste, often getting released as heat.
- This waste heat can be tapped, and further converted into electrical energy.
The need of new material
- Most efficient thermoelectric materials developed by scientists so far use Lead (Pb) as a major constituent element, restricting their use for mass-market applications.
- Thermoelectric energy conversion allows generation of electrical voltage when one end of a material is heated while keeping the other side cold.
- Finding an efficient material to realize this scientific principle has been a daunting task for scientists.
