First published 18 September 2025
QUT researchers have developed a new material that achieves record-high thermoelectric performance, paving the way for more efficient conversion of waste heat into clean electricity.
The study, published in Energy & Environmental Science, found that adding manganese to silver copper telluride made it the most efficient material of its kind.
The research team, led by Professor Zhi-Gang Chen and Dr Xiao-Lei Shi from QUT’s School of Chemistry and Physics, the ARC Research Hub in Zero-emission Power Generation for Carbon Neutrality, and the QUT Centre for Materials Science, built a prototype device which was used to convert electricity.
First author Nan-Hai Li, also from the School of Chemistry and Physics and the ARC Research Hub, said the tiny change to the material resulted in a product far better at converting heat into electricity.
“We showed it could reach record efficiency levels for its class, and when tested in a prototype device it delivered more than 13 per cent conversion efficiency – putting it alongside the best current technologies,” Dr Li said.
Professor Chen said that 13 per cent conversion efficiency, in simple terms, meant that with the prototype, for every 100 units of heat energy that go into the device, about 13 units were turned into electricity.
“That might not sound like much, but it is a very high number for thermoelectric materials, with most of them only managing a conversion efficiency of a few per cent.”
Professor Chen said the research pointed to new opportunities for clean energy.
“Every day, huge amounts of heat from cars, factories and power stations simply vanish into the air,” Professor Chen said.
“This material gives us a way to capture some of that lost energy and turn it into clean power.”
Associate Professor Shi said the material also had an environmental edge.
“Unlike many other options, this compound doesn’t rely on toxic elements. It’s stable, simple to produce, and therefore a strong candidate for real-world use,” she said.
The full QUT research team was: Nan-Hai Li, Associate Professor Xiao-Lei Shi, Meng Li, Min Zhang, Wen-Yi Chen, Yong-Qi Chen, Professor Dmitri Golberg, Dr Dongchen Qi, Chao Zhang, Xiaodong Wang and Professor Zhi-Gang Chen. The researchers belonged to the QUT School of Chemistry and Physics, the Central Analytical Research Facility, the QUT Centre for Materials Science and the ARC Research Hub in Zero-emission Power Generation for Carbon Neutrality.
Read the full paper, Manganese doping induced record-high medium-temperature AgCuTe thermoelectrics, online.
Top image: Dr Chao Zhang, Professor Zhi-Gang Chen, Distinguished Professor Dmitri Golberg, Dr Xiaodong (Tony) Wang, Mr Nan-Hai Li, Associate Professor Dong-Chen Qi, Ms Yong-Qi Chen and Dr Xiao-Lei Shi.
Media contact:
Rod Chester
QUT Media
media@qut.edu.au
07 3138 2361 / 0407 585 901 (After Hours)
