Structure and thermoelectric performance of Ti-filled and Te-doped skutterudite TixCo4Sb11.5Te0.5 bulks fabricated by combination of microwave synthesis and spark plasma sintering

In the present wok, a series of Ti-filled and Te-doped skutterudite compounds Ti x Co 4 Sb 11.5 Te 0.5 (x = 0.2, 0.3, 0.5) were successful fabricated by combination of microwave synthesis and spark plasma sintering technique. The microstructure and thermoelectric properties of Ti x Co 4 Sb 11.5 Te 0.5 bulks have been investigated systematically. The experimental results show that nearly single phase skutterudite were obtained by 5 min microwave synthesis. The Ti 0.3 Co 4 Sb 11.5 Te 0.5 bulk has smallest and uniform grain size of about 2 μm. The influences of Ti concentration on thermoelectric properties were discussed. A highest ZT of 0.60 for Ti 0.3 Co 4 Sb 11.5 Te 0.5 was achieved at 773 K along with a total thermal conductivity of 3.72 W m −1  K −1 , one might obtain higher values at a higher temperature.