Thermoelectric Legs Research Articles

Performance evolution of thermoelectric modules under constant heat flux

The current efforts of design optimization, including load resistance, topology, and parasitic energy loss analysis, mainly focus on the thermoelectric modules operating under constant temperature difference. By contrast, these mechanisms contribute to the output parameters of thermoelectric modules under constant heat flux is still ambiguous. Here, by choosing the PbTe as a case study, COMSOL Multiphysics software to establish the three-dimensional numerical model is employed. The quantitative analytical method for heat transfer verifies that the reduction in hot side temperature of modules is dominated by Peltier effect, leading to the deviation of practical optimal ratio between load resistance and internal resistance (RL/Rin) from the traditional maximum power point (MPP). Moreover, the increased thermoelectric leg height significantly enhances the average figure of merit zTavg of P/N thermoelectric materials, triggering an improvement of optimal RL/Rin and output performance. Through manipulating the leg cross-sectional area ratio (Ap/An) to ∼0.82, a high efficiency of ∼14.5% is achieved for ideal contacted PbTe-based thermoelectric modules at a temperature difference of 500 K. Furthermore, the critical role of parasitic energy loss on performance evolution are recognized. Eventually, the different types of module are established to verify the effectiveness of above theory. The present findings provide universal guidance for advancing the efficiency of thermoelectric modules operating under constant heat flux.

Proposing linear structure for annular thermoelectric generators; thermal, exergetic, mechanical, and economic analysis

Annular thermoelectric generators have been the subject of many studies in recent years due to their structure which improves the efficiency when recovering heat from round surfaces. A novel linear arrangement of legs is proposed in this paper which greatly increases the flexibility of design compared to the conventional π structure of annular thermoelectric generators. Every geometric feature of the legs in the linear annular thermoelectric generator can be changed and optimized independently. Numerical simulations are carried out to study the effect of various parameters such as height ratio (θh), total height (h), angle ratio (θφ), total angle (φ), thickness ratio (θt), total thickness (t), hot and cold side temperature on the output power, efficiency, mechanical and economic performance of the linear shape annular thermoelectric generator. Results indicated that the height ratio, angle ratio, and thickness ratio of 0.5 lead to the highest conversion and exergy efficiencies while producing the lowest thermal stress on the legs and having the least cost per watt of output power. Additionally, it is found that the increment of the total combined height, total angle, or total thickness of the thermoelectric legs increases the costs per watt of output power. For example, the dollar/watt value is grown by 7% when the total thickness is increased from 8 mm to 16 mm for an angle ratio of 0.5. The increase of the heat source temperature can boost the output power, and conversion efficiency, and lower the cost but also impose larger stress as well.

Prismatic Spreading–Constriction Expression for the Improvement of Impedance Spectroscopy Models and a More Accurate Determination of the Internal Thermal Contact Resistances of Thermoelectric Modules

Thermoelectric (TE) devices can convert heat to electrical power or use electrical power to generate a temperature difference. Their characterization is essential to develop devices with higher efficiency. Impedance spectroscopy models have been developed in the last few years, and it has become a highly advantageous method for TE system characterization. Recently, it has been shown that this technique can also be used to determine internal thermal contacts (between the TE legs and the metallic strips that connect them and between the metallic strips and the outer layers). Here, we developed for the first time a spreading–constriction expression which does not assume cylindrical geometry. The enhanced model is also used to characterize four TE devices from different manufacturers, highlighting overestimations up to 13% when the previous cylindrical approximation is used. A code is provided in the Supporting Information ready to fit the experimental data. This study positions impedance spectroscopy as a powerful tool to detect and monitor issues during manufacturing or operation of TE devices, which typically occur at the contacts.

High thermoelectric performance in multiscale Ag8SnSe6 included n-type bismuth telluride for cooling application

The efficiency of Bi2Te3 thermoelectric generators is strongly constrained by the fact that n-type alloys always perform poorly thermoelectrically compared to their p-type counterparts. Here, we report an efficient method for improving the thermoelectric performance of n-type Bi2Te2.69Se0.33Cl0.03 by incorporating Ag8SnSe6. The incorporation of Ag8SnSe6 increases the carrier effective mass as a result of dissolved Ag and Sn atoms in Bi2Te2.69Se0.33Cl0.03, which in turn enhances the Seebeck coefficient. The thermal conductivity of Bi2Te2.69Se0.33Cl0.03 also decreases due to multiscale phonon scattering from both the residual Ag8SnSe6 second phase and point defects. Consequently, we achieve a high ZT of 1.24 at 353 K and a high average ZT of 1.12 for temperatures in the range of 300–433 K in Bi2Te2.69Se0.33Cl0.03 + 1 wt% Ag8SnSe6, which are respectively ∼ 27.42% and ∼ 26.78% larger than those of Bi2Te2.69Se0.33Cl0.03. Furthermore, a device with two couples of n-p thermoelectric legs based on 1 wt% Ag8SnSe6 n-type legs shows a greater cooling temperature drop (28%) than that of the Bi2Te2.69Se0.33Cl0.03 n-type legs device. The high thermoelectric and mechanical performance (83.4 HV) of Ag8SnSe6 incorporation in n-type Bi2Te3 makes them strong candidates for practical applications.

Optimal Design of Wearable Micro Thermoelectric Generator Working in a Height-Confined Space

With the increasing development of self-powered wearable electronic devices, there is a growing interest in thermoelectric generators (TEGs). To achieve more comprehensive and reliable functionality of wearable devices, improving the power generation performance of thermoelectric devices will be the key. It has been shown that integrating a heat sink at the cold end of the TEG increases the effective temperature difference and, thus, maximizes the power output of the thermoelectric device. However, the space left for the power supply is often limited. How to optimize the integrated system of micro-thermoelectric generators and heat sinks in a height-confined space has become the key. In this study, we have established a corresponding model using a numerical calculation method, systematically studied the influence of TEG geometric size on the number of fins and fin height, and determined the optimal number of fins for the highest equivalent convective heat transfer coefficient corresponding to different fin heights. We also conducted the co-design of TEG and fin topological structure to study the effects of the ratio of leg height to fin height (l/H), the width of legs (w), and the number of thermoelectric leg pairs (N) on the maximum output power density per unit area (Pm1) and the maximum output power density per unit mass (Pm2) of the device. When N = 16, w = 0.3 mm, l/H = 2.5 (that is, l = 3.57 mm, H = 1.43 mm), and Pm1 reaches the maximum value of 30.5 μW/cm2; When N = 2, l/H = 0.25 and w = 0.3 mm, and Pm2 reaches a maximum value of 5.12 mW/g. The measured values of the open-circuit voltages of fabricated micro-TEGs with different thermoelectric leg heights (l = 0.49 mm, l = 1.38 mm, and l = 1.88 mm) are basically consistent with the simulated values. When N = 2, l = 0.49 mm, H = 3.74 mm, and w = 0.85 mm, and Pm2 reaches 0.44 mW/g. The results provide insights into the optimal design of wearable micro thermoelectric generator working in a height-confined space and highlight the importance of co-designing TEGs and fin topological structures for optimizing their performance.

Mechanical Compatibility between Mg3(Sb,Bi)2 and MgAgSb in Thermoelectric Modules.

Thermoelectric (TE) modules are exposed to temperature gradients and repeated thermal cycles during their operation; therefore, mechanically robust n- and p-type legs are required to ensure their structural integrity. The difference in the coefficients of thermal expansion (CTEs) of the two legs of a TE module can cause stress buildup and the deterioration of performance with frequent thermal cycles. Recently, n-type Mg3Sb2 and p-type MgAgSb have become two promising components of low-temperature TE modules because of to their high TE performance, nontoxicity, and abundance. However, the CTEs of n-Mg3Sb2 and p-MgAgSb differ by approximately 10%. Furthermore, the oxidation resistances of these materials at increased temperatures are unclear. This work manipulates the thermal expansion of Mg3Sb2 by alloying it with Mg3Bi2. The addition of Bi to Mg3Sb2 reduces the coefficient of linear thermal expansion from 22.6 × 10-6 to 21.2 × 10-6 K-1 for Mg3Sb1.5Bi0.5, which is in excellent agreement with that of MgAgSb (21 × 10-6 K-1). Furthermore, thermogravimetric data indicate that both Mg3Sb1.5Bi0.5 and MgAgSb are stable in air and Ar at temperatures below ∼570 K. The results suggest the compatibility and robustness of Mg3Sb1.5Bi0.5 and MgAgSb as a pair of thermoelectric legs for low-temperature TE modules.

Investigating the effect of defect states and to enhance the electrical conductivity of p-type Vanadium-doped MoS2 for wearable thermoelectric application

Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) and vanadium (V) doped MoS2 nanosheets grown on carbon fabric had been synthesized as a wearable thermoelectric (WTEGs) leg. The structural analysis confirmed the formation of MoS2 nanosheets on carbon fabric. Raman analysis showed the decrease in structural defects, thus leading to the strong interaction between the MoS2 and carbon fabric, which endows the higher charge mobility. Pristine MoS2/CC and V-doped MoS2/CC exhibited flower-like morphology and the growth mechanism of has been proposed. The presence of Mo–O–C bonds shows that the carbon cloth surfaces have several OH active sites, thus they can also serve as excellent nucleation sites for MoS2. This interfacial interaction enhances the electron transport rate and structural stability. The MV2 sample demonstrated an increase in electrical conductivity of 2639.26 S/m at 303 K and 2784.55 S/m at 373 K, which was higher than the MV0 and MV4 samples. The enhancement in electrical conductivity was due extra charge carrier released by V3+ ions. Further, a thermopile was built utilizing V doped MoS2 nanosheets grown on carbon fabric (i.e., an MV4 sample with a high Seebeck coefficient) as the p-type material and Ag-fabric as the n-type material. This WTEGs device showed an output voltage in the range of 17.96–37.24 mV and output power in the range of 0.18–0.48 pW with a ΔT = 3–10 K, respectively.

High-efficiency and reliable same-parent thermoelectric modules using Mg3Sb2-based compounds.

Thermoelectric modules can convert waste heat directly into useful electricity, providing a clean and sustainable way to use fossil energy more efficiently. Mg3Sb2-based alloys have recently attracted considerable interest from the thermoelectric community due to their nontoxic nature, abundance of constituent elements and excellent mechanical and thermoelectric properties. However, robust modules based on Mg3Sb2 have progressed less rapidly. Here, we develop multiple-pair thermoelectric modules consisting of both n-type and p-type Mg3Sb2-based alloys. Thermoelectric legs based on the same parent fit into each other in terms of thermomechanical properties, facilitating module fabrication and ensuring low thermal stress. By adopting a suitable diffusion barrier layer and developing a new joining technique, an integrated all-Mg3Sb2-based module demonstrates a high efficiency of 7.5% at a temperature difference of 380K, exceeding the state-of-the-art same-parent thermoelectric modules. Moreover, the efficiency remains stable during 150 thermal cycling shocks (∼225h), demonstrating excellent module reliability.

A self-healable, recyclable, and flexible thermoelectric device for wearable energy harvesting and personal thermal management

Flexible thermoelectric devices (f-TEDs) can realize direct energy conversion between heat and electricity, which hold great prospects in wearable power source and personal thermal management. However, conventional f-TEDs made from intrinsically flexible thermoelectric materials have low power density, and elastomer sealed bulk thermoelectric materials-based f-TEDs can hardly achieve active cooling. Additionally, these f-TEDs usually are not self-healable and recyclable, which easily occur fractures in wearable applications. Here, we developed a self-healable and recyclable f-TED by integrating dynamic covalent thermoset polyimine with liquid metal and thermoelectric legs. This f-TED achieves a normalized power density of 1.54 μW·cm−2·K−2, and can deliver a record 13.8 °C on-body cooling effect with a high coefficient of performance (COP) at 3.91 under 7 °C temperature difference, which leads to a low power consumption of ∼ 38 W for the cooling of regular human body. Based on the f-TED, we further developed a personal thermal management system, which can keep body within comfort zone at different surrounding temperatures, also realize healthcare function for fever or sprained ankle. Compared with conventional thermoelectric devices, this f-TED can simultaneously achieve self-healability, recyclability, flexibility, large normalized power density, and high on-body cooling effect with low power consumption. Such f-TED could open up new opportunities to develop devices for wearable energy harvesting and personal thermal management.

Energy harvesting from ambient heat sources using thermoelectric generator – A modelling study

Thermoelectric technology is an attractive energy harvesting technique for direct conversion of heat into electricity from ambient heat sources. This can provide sustainable energy to small and self-powered devices for Internet-of-Things, wearable electronics, and sensors in remote areas. Currently, bismuth telluride and magnesium bismuthide based thermoelectric devices are used for ambient condition applications. Transparent thermoelectric materials offer opportunities to design multifunctional devices for energy harvesting, cooling, optoelectronics, and sensor applications. Energy conversion efficiency of a thermoelectric generator (TEG) is dependent on thermoelectric materials properties and geometrical design of p-n module. Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity is optimized to obtain high figure-of-merit (ZT) to ensure high performance of TEG. Geometrical design parameters such as thermoelectric leg length, cross-section area, load resistance play import roles on efficient heat transfer across the heat source and sink in a p-n module for maximum power output of a TEG. We report power output calculated using analytical modelling for a state-of-the-art transparent indium-tin-oxide and copper iodide thermoelectric module. The maximum power output was calculated to be 9.9 µW at ΔT = 20 K for a 5 µm leg length and 500 µm2 cross section area. Large-area application of TEGs should optimize the inherent thermoelectric materials’ parameters and geometrical design to maximize the power output in the range of mW - µW. Energy harvesting from ambient heat sources using efficient TEGs can be used for energy harvesting applications from building’s glass windows, wearable technologies, geothermal fields, and low-grade waste heat from industrial applications.

Numerical investigation on cooling performance of multilayer pyramid thermoelectric module

A three-dimensional study on the cooling performance of thermoelectric module consisting of multilayer pyramid thermoelectric legs is investigated numerically. Two physical models were established for comparison, which are rectangular shaped and multilayer pyramid thermoelectric cooling modules, respectively. This study mainly focuses on the effect of leg height, side ratio and the number of leg layers on the cooling performance of thermoelectric module. Generally, the obtained results showed that the multilayer pyramid module has better cooling performance than that of rectangular shaped module. By increasing the values of side ratio and the number of layers, the maximum reduction of the minimum averaged temperature of cold surface reaches 11.25 K compared to the rectangular shaped module. It is also observed that when the values of side ratio and the number of leg layers are low such as 1.5 and 1, the multilayer pyramid module has not very good cooling performance. Finally, a recommended map on the multilayer pyramid module is presented according to side ratio and the number of leg layers for the different heights of thermoelectric legs to evaluate the cooling performance.

Asymmetric thermal rectifier with designed in-plane temperature gradient zones for thermoelectric generator

Temperature difference and its duration are two main factors that affect thermoelectric performance. One can obtain the desired temperature distributions by manipulating heat flow directions; however, it is generally neglected when designing thermoelectric generators (TEGs). In this study, thermal rectifiers work in forward directions to produce in-plane temperature differences (ΔTh), where hot and cold zones are, respectively, provided by the small terminals of rectifiers and gaps between these areas. Thermoelectric legs placed above are arranged in an “X”-shape, keep TEGs' internal resistances, and have a stable range from 0.7 to 2 Ω; even heating temperatures Th have a significant range from 30 to 80 °C. When the rectification coefficient of thermal rectifiers was 1.63 and the thickness of thermoelectric legs decreased from 1 mm to 10 μm, simulated-ΔTh in the steady state rises from 2.62 to 27.10 °C rather than falling. An experimental thermal rectifier with a PI film thickness of 25 μm demonstrates that ΔTh can reach up to 14.7 °C, and the time duration is more than 60 s, where Th and ambient are 50 and 20 °C, respectively. The maximum output power can reach up to 92.48 μW when the temperature bias between Th and ambient increases to 65.33 °C. These novel thin-TEGs with designed in-plane temperature gradient zones by asymmetric thermal rectifiers are expected to be applied in distributed sensors, wearable devices, etc.

Geometry Optimization for Miniaturized Thermoelectric Generators.

Thermoelectric materials capable of converting heat into electrical energy are used in sustainable electric generators, whose efficiency has been normally increased with incorporation of new materials with high figure of merit (ZT) values. Because the performance of these thermoelectric generators (TEGs) also depends on device geometry, in this study we employ the finite element method to determine optimized geometries for highly efficient miniaturized TEGs. We investigated devices with similar fill factors but with different thermoelectric leg geometries (filled and hollow). Our results show that devices with legs of hollow geometry are more efficient than those with filled geometry for the same length and cross-sectional area of thermoelectric legs. This behavior was observed for thermoelectric leg lengths smaller than 0.1 mm, where the leg shape causes a significant difference in temperature distribution along the device. It was found that for reaching highly efficient miniaturized TEGs, one has to consider the leg geometry in addition to the thermal conductivity.

Apparatus for measurement of thermoelectric properties of a single leg under large temperature differences.

Thermoelectric (TE) devices operate under large temperature differences, but material property measurements are typically accomplished under small temperature differences. Because of the issues associated with forming proper contact between the test sample and the electrodes and the control of heat flux, there are very few reports on large temperature difference measurements. Therefore, practically relevant performance parameters of a device, namely, power output and efficiency, are estimated by temperature averaging of material properties, whose accuracy is rarely validated by experimental investigations. To overcome these issues, we report an apparatus that has been designed and assembled to measure the TE properties-Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and power output and efficiency of a single thermoelectric material sample over large temperature gradients. The sample holder-a unique feature of this design-lowers the contact resistance between the sample and the electrodes, allowing for more accurate estimates of the sample's properties. Measurements were performed under constant temperature differences ranging from 50 to 300K with the hot side reaching 673K on a metallized Mg2Si0.3Sn0.7 leg synthesized in the laboratory. To simulate practical operating conditions of a continuously loaded generator, continuous current flow measurements were also performed under large temperature differences. The temperature-averaged TE properties from standard low temperature difference measurements and the experimental TE properties agree with each other, indicating that the designed setup is reliable for measuring various thermoelectric generator properties of single TE legs when subjected to temperature gradients between 50 and 300K.

Performance assessment and optimization of a thin-film thermoelectric cooler for on-chip transient thermal management

On-demand cooling of thin-film thermoelectric cooler (TFTEC) is a promising technique for energy-saving and high efficiency. However, the transient cooling process of TFTEC is complex and systematic, involving temperature-dependent material properties, geometry factors, parasitic parameters and control parameters. In this work, a system-level optimization of the on-chip transient thermal management (TTM) performance of a Bi2Te3-based TFTEC is performed using a transient three-dimensional numerical model. The response surface method is applied to obtain a predictive model for evaluating the transient cooling performance of TFTEC in terms of four different design factors of thermoelectric leg height, electrode height, current pulse width and amplitude. The relationships between the above design factors and responses including passive cooling, active cooling, temperature overshoot, and time delay and their interactive effects are investigated. Finally, single- and multi-objective optimizations are employed to optimize these responses in different scenarios. The results show that the TFTEC with the optimal configuration enables a passive cooling of 15.57 °C and an active cooling of 5.85 °C simultaneously for a chip hotspot with a transient heat flux of 1300 W/cm2. Furthermore, the hotspot temperature can be limited to 7.15℃ lower than the predefined temperature limit, while the high-power pulse loading time can be extended by 690.2 ms.

Waste heat recovery from exhausted gas of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell to produce hydrogen using thermoelectric generator

Proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is an efficient (40–50%) carrier to utilize hydrogen, which means around 50–60% of waste heat dissipates into ambience. To recover waste heat, advance hydrogen production and system efficiency, a novel integrated system with power generation and hydrogen production is proposed in this paper. The system includes a PEMFC, the thermoelectric generator (TEG) modules and a water electrolysis cell. The effects of cooling-method, electrical array configuration, the outlet temperature of PEMFC on the output power, system efficiency, hydrogen production rate and payback period have been investigated by means of a sensitivity analysis. The life cycle climate performance method is applied to evaluate the environmental performance. The results show that the hydrogen production rate of the water-cooling method is 31.4–44.8% larger than that of the air-cooling method. The electrical array configuration has no obvious effect on system performance. Additionally, the outlet temperature of PEMFC has positive effect on hydrogen production per module, while TEG module number is opposed. Furthermore, for optimizing the system, six different objection functions have been developed and compared. After optimization, the optimal height, area and volume of the thermoelectric leg are 1.01–1.3 mm, 2.52–3.28 mm2 and 3.08–4.26 mm3 at range of outlet temperature within 50–100 °C. The net output power, system efficiency and hydrogen production are 31.8–39.4%, 3.7–31.5% and 22.1–34.5% higher than that of the commercial module. The payback period and the year achieving zero carbon emissions are 15.0–34.3% and 17.8–36.8% lower than that of commercial module.

High-Performance Skutterudite/Half-Heusler Cascaded Thermoelectric Module Using the Transient Liquid Phase Sintering Joining Technique.

Thermoelectric (TE) materials have made rapid advancement in the past decade, paving the pathway toward the design of solid-state waste heat recovery systems. The next requirement in the design process is realization of full-scale multistage TE devices in the medium to high temperature range for enhanced power generation. Here, we report the design and manufacturing of full-scale skutterudite (SKD)/half-Heusler (hH) cascaded TE devices with 49-couple TE legs for each stage. The automated pick-and-place tool is employed for module fabrication providing overall high manufacturing process efficiency and repeatability. Optimized Ti/Ni/Au coating layers are developed for metallization as the diffusion barrier and electrode contact layers. The Cu-Sn transient liquid phase sintering technique is utilized for SKD and hH stages, which provides a high strength bonding and very low contact resistance. A remarkably high output power of 38.3 W with a device power density of 2.8 W·cm-2 at a temperature gradient of 513 °C is achieved. These results provide an avenue for widespread utilization of TE technology in waste heat recovery applications.

Targeted recovery of metals from thermoelectric generators (TEGs) using chloride brines and ultrasound

Recycling of thermoelectric materials: thermoelectric leg and copper plates removed by targeted oxidation or thermoelectric legs removed by high-intensity ultrasonication.

Design and experimental study of an outdoor portable thermoelectric air-conditioning system

This study aims to identify suitable microclimate cooling systems to reduce heat stress and improve human thermal comfort. A portable thermoelectric air conditioner was developed for local cooling of the human body. Effects of core components thermoelectric refrigerators (TECs), hot end heat dissipation, intake flow and cold end heat exchangers on TEAC performance. It is shown that, remarkably, this operating voltage can be distinguished from the optimal voltage for the maximum operational performance of TEAC. When the TECs operating voltage is 4V, the maximum COP is 2.2, and the best operating voltage is 10V, the maximum cooling capacity is 26.7 W (COP=0.92). Simulation data show that the area of the diffuser can effectively control the contact between the air and the cooling surface with an error of less than 10% compared to the experimental results. The fans and radiators attached to the hot side of the TEM play an important role in keeping the temperature difference on the hot side of the TECs as small as possible, by dissipating the heat generated on the hot side of the TEM to the external environment. In addition, the experimental refrigeration capacity is greater than 26.7 W and the new system has ultra-quiet operation at large refrigeration capacity, which has promising potential for advanced refrigeration, building air conditioning, ventilation systems and other applications. • Thermalelecrtic air conditioner (TEAC) can achieve a cooling capacity of 26.7W and a cooling coefficient of 0.92, enabling local cooling of the human body. • The maximum cooling capacity of thermoelectric refrigerator varies nonlinearly with the surface area and height of thermoelectric leg. • The increase of cooling capacity decreases with the increase of intake flow rate. • Increasing the strength of heat dissipation at the hot end of the thermoelectric cooler has a larger effect on the TEAC cooling capacity than on the cooling coefficient.

Plasma-jet printing of colloidal thermoelectric Bi2Te3 nanoflakes for flexible energy harvesting.

Thermoelectric generators (TEGs) convert temperature differences into electrical power and are attractive among energy harvesting devices due to their autonomous and silent operation. While thermoelectric materials have undergone substantial improvements in material properties, a reliable and cost-effective fabrication method suitable for microgravity and space applications remains a challenge, particularly as commercial space flight and extended crewed space missions increase in frequency. This paper demonstrates the use of plasma-jet printing (PJP), a gravity-independent, electromagnetic field-assisted printing technology, to deposit colloidal thermoelectric nanoflakes with engineered nanopores onto flexible substrates at room temperature. We observe substantial improvements in material adhesion and flexibility with less than 2% and 11% variation in performance after 10 000 bending cycles over 25 mm and 8 mm radii of curvature, respectively, as compared to previously reported TE films. Our printed films demonstrate electrical conductivity of 2.5 × 103 S m-1 and a power factor of 70 μW m-1 K-2 at room temperature. To our knowledge, these are the first reported values of plasma-jet printed thermoelectric nanomaterial films. This advancement in plasma jet printing significantly promotes the development of nanoengineered 2D and layered materials not only for energy harvesting but also for the development of large-scale flexible electronics and sensors for both space and commercial applications.