Thermoelectrics cools, heats, makes electricity and senses. Many proponents have stumbled with the wrong choice in the wrong applications. For example, trying to make electricity from car exhausts just as they become obsolete is a fool’s errand.

Gentherm failed with thermoelectric generators then pivoted to create a business of hundreds of millions of dollars yearly in thermal management, notably thermoelectric car-seat systems. Many big names are now chasing them in this, notably for the COVID-defying battery electric vehicle market.

First to analyze this big picture is the new IDTechEx report, “Thermoelectric Cooling, Heating, Harvesting: 90 Companies’ Achievements and Strategies Appraised with Roadmap 2022-2042”. It includes other successes arriving with vehicles on land, water, and air such as temperature-controlled head-up displays, laser headlights, autonomy components, and military jet aircon. However, the rapid adoption in medical and many other sectors is also well covered.

Researched by multilingual, PhD-level analysts across the world, this unique report reveals how a more thoughtful approach to thermoelectric energy harvesting is seeing success in self-powered sensors and much besides. There is even a separate drill-down report on thermoelectric-generation research, sub-markets, and options.

Raghu Das, CEO of analysts IDTechEx advises, “Nowadays, the research pipeline is far less concerned with toxic, rare elements and optimizing parameters that are not key to commercial success. Industrialists are more open-minded about new applications. For example, there is a real possibility of thermoelectric generators becoming viable in geothermal energy and other high-power applications. We, therefore, take a careful look at 90 companies involved, from patents to research papers, product offerings, and financials. In some cases, big changes are likely in about ten years so we give a 20-year forecast and roadmap of company intentions. It is quite an eye-opener.”

In the overview, “Thermoelectric Cooling, Heating, Harvesting: 90 Companies’ Achievements and Strategies Appraised with Roadmap 2022-2042” the reader gains a full understanding of why thermoelectric cooling, heating, harvesting, and sensing is partly a success now, partly later. Leading patentors and countries are sequenced in pie charts by sector. Assess evolving optimal materials, parameters, designs, applications, technology, and strategy with a 90-company comparison, market-leader success factors and mistakes, company intentions, and a unit and value market forecast for 2022-2042. The 300+ pages cover activities emerging in the complete value chain but primarily modules and sub-systems, secondarily materials manufacturers and end-users.

Questions answered include:
• 90 companies involved in thermoelectrics: profiles, SWOT reports, products, strategies, uniques?
• Those that have the largest activity in which form of thermoelectrics and why?
• Which companies to watch, what sectors do they target and why?
• Roadmap of company thermoelectric initiatives 2022-2042?
• Global thermoelectric market units and $billion 2022-2042?
• What worthwhile markets and dead ends are emerging?
• Interpret patent and company research landscape?
• What is technically required for the future?
• Regional distribution of effort and why?

This 327-page report full of illustrations, charts, photographs and analysis includes:
• Executive summary and conclusions
In 30 densely packed pages, this overview presents the regional split of companies, patents by leading companies and overall by type with trends and commentary. There is a market forecast and company and technology roadmap, both for 2022-2042.

See the explanation of the basic types and their market dynamics. View the explanation and significance of medical, flexible, and other types emerging. Understand the compounds involved and the significance of certain companies moving to eliminate toxic and rare materials. See the impact of COVID-19 on automotive applications graphed by IDTechEx, because of their importance to thermoelectrics and their vulnerability.

• 83 Companies in thermoelectric cooling and temperature management by country and where they are in the value chain

• 64 Companies in thermoelectric energy harvesting and sensors by country and where they are in the value chain

• 90 thermoelectric materials, modules, subsystems and end-equipment companies with research thrust and products illustrated and appraised including company SWOT assessments
This is the longest part of the report with detailed information on each company including location, products, strategy, partnerships, initiatives, product ranges, and important research as appropriate with successes, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats identified.