N-type thermoelectric recycled carbon fibre sheet with electrochemically deposited Bi₂Te₃

An N-type thermoelectric recycled carbon fibre sheet with bismuth telluride coating has been successfully synthesised through an electro-deposition technique. The Seebeck coefficient and electrical properties of the combined recycled carbon fibre sheet and bismuth telluride films are reported. Classification of the crystal structure, surface morphology and the elemental composition of the resulting deposits are methodically characterised by XRD, SEM and EDX. Cyclic voltammetry is also carried out in nitric acid solutions to investigate the right range of deposition potential. The synthesis N-type thermoelectric sheet has a highest attainable Seebeck coefficient of −54μVK^-1 and an electrical resistivity of 8.9×10^-5Ωm. The results show slight differences in morphologies and thermoelectric properties for the films deposited at varying deposition potential. The increase in thermoelectrical properties of the recycled carbon fibre is in line with the development of using coated recycled fibre for thermoelectrical applications.