Realizing High Thermoelectric Performance in Earth-Abundant Bi2S3 Bulk Materials via Halogen Acid Modulation

Bi2S3-based thermoelectric materials without toxic and expensive elements have a high Seebeck coefficient and intrinsic low thermal conductivity. However, Bi2S3 suffers from low electrical conductivity, which makes it a less-than-perfect thermoelectric material. In this work, halogen elements F, Cl, and Br from halogen acid are successfully introduced into the Bi2S3 lattice using a hydrothermal procedure to efficiently improve the carrier concentration. Compared with the pure sample, the electron concentration of the Bi2S3 sample treated with HCl is increased by two orders of magnitude. An optimal power factor of 470 mu W m(-1) K-2 for the Bi2S2.96Cl0.04 sample at 673 K is obtained. Density functional theory calculations reveal that an effective delocalized electron conductive network forms after Cl doping, which raises the Fermi level into the conduction bands, thus generating more free electrons and improving the conductivity of the Bi2S3-based materials. Ultimately, an excellent ZT of approximate to 0.8 is achieved at 673 K for the Bi2S2.96Cl0.04 sample, which is one of the highest values reported for a state-of-the-art Bi2S3 system. The energy conversion efficiency of the module reaches 2.3% at 673 K with a temperature difference of 373 K. This study offers a new method for enhancing the thermoelectric properties of Bi2S3 by adding halogen acid in the hydrothermal process for powder synthesis.