ABSTRACT
This chapter presents electrochemical de-alloying of zinc from C26000 brass (Cu70Zn30 alloy) to form porous copper, followed by electrodeposition of Te-Bi-Pb alloys on the porous substrate. Te-Bi-Pb alloys are deposited in a nonequilibrium condition with linearly increasing cathode potentials. Te has the highest tendency to get deposited on the substrate, while Bi and Pb have the same tendency. Scanning electron microscopic analysis indicates that with an increase in the thickness of the Te-Bi-Pb coating, the morphology of the alloys changes from particulate to dendritic fractals. The composition of the alloys changes from Te2BiPb to Te3BiPb. The thermoelectricity of the deposited alloys on porous copper was tested. The results show that Te-Bi-Pb is an n-type semiconductor. Due to the deposition of Te-Bi-Pb alloys on the copper surface, the absolute value of the Seebeck coefficient increases.
