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An inconvenient truth about thermoelectrics

Nature Materials volume 8, pages 83–85 (2009)Cite this article

Despite recent advances, thermoelectric energy conversion will never be as efficient as steam engines. That means thermoelectrics will remain limited to applications served poorly or not at all by existing technology. Bad news for thermoelectricians, but the climate crisis requires that we face bad news head on.

In the past, competition, peer review and free-market forces could be relied on to cull competing ideas to the general benefit of society. Even if someone shamelessly advocated a particular technology, the invisible hand of the marketplace would eventually sort out which solutions where best for society as a whole. But the climate crisis utterly disrupts this traditional business-as-usual calculus for R&D investment; unbridled advocacy need not lead to solutions that are optimal, or even acceptable. Indeed, by definition it is these business-as-usual methods that led to this crisis.

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Figure 1: Integrating thermoelectrics into vehicles for improved fuel efficiency.

BMW Group

Figure 2: Assessing thermoelectrics.
Figure 3: Size can favour thermoelectrics.

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Acknowledgements

I wish to thank A. Gore, L. Bell, J. Snyder, J. Stockholm, C. Uher, B. LeSage, B. Nickerson, R. Venkatasubramanian, D. Rowe, T. Kajikawa, J.-P. Fleurial, T. Caillat, J. Heath, L. Whitlow, H. Böttner, E. P. Vining and many others throughout the thermoelectric community for discussions and input. The opinions, errors and omissions, however, are solely my own.

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  1. Cronin B. Vining is at ZT Services, 2203 Johns Circle, Auburn, Alabama 36830-7113, USA. nature@zts.com,

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C.B.V. is an independent energy conversion consultant.

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Vining, C. An inconvenient truth about thermoelectrics. Nature Mater 8, 83–85 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat2361

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