IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/energy/v229y2021ics0360544221009464.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Application of thermoelectric devices in performance optimization of a domestic PEMFC-based CHP system

Author

Listed:
  • Zou, Wen-Jiang
  • Shen, Kun-Yang
  • Jung, Seunghun
  • Kim, Young-Bae

Abstract

Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC)-based combined heat and power (CHP) hybrid system is a promising power source to achieve residential energy independence because it can generate electricity and heat simultaneously. However, a large amount of energy waste remains because the ratio of electricity and heat output fluctuates with the end user requirement. A thermoelectric generator (TEG) is introduced to enhance the power output of the PEMFC-CHP hybrid system. It can also increase system performance and alleviate the mismatch between energy supply and demand. This research establishes a comprehensive model of the PEMFC-TEG-CHP hybrid system to deeply analyze its operating mechanism and optimize power output performance. The corresponding experimental setup is built to validate its availability of the proposed model. Results reveal that the conversion efficiency of TEG is 0.408% when converting heat to electric power from a 5 kW PEMFC-based CHP hybrid system. Furthermore, the total hybrid system efficiency can reach 85.1% with increments in the electrical efficiency and the energy efficiency of the CHP system of 0.325% and 0.129%, respectively, by exploiting 30-unit TEG modules. The present study demonstrates the feasibility of the PEMFC-TEG-CHP system and implies the promising future of low-grade heat energy recovery using TEGs.

Suggested Citation

  • Zou, Wen-Jiang & Shen, Kun-Yang & Jung, Seunghun & Kim, Young-Bae, 2021. "Application of thermoelectric devices in performance optimization of a domestic PEMFC-based CHP system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 229(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:energy:v:229:y:2021:i:c:s0360544221009464
    DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2021.120698
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360544221009464
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.energy.2021.120698?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kim, Taemin & Ko, Youngsu & Lee, Younghun & Cha, Cheolung & Kim, Namsu, 2020. "Experimental analysis of flexible thermoelectric generators used for self-powered devices," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    2. Högblom, Olle & Andersson, Ronnie, 2016. "A simulation framework for prediction of thermoelectric generator system performance," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 180(C), pages 472-482.
    3. Wang, Tongcai & Luan, Weiling & Wang, Wei & Tu, Shan-Tung, 2014. "Waste heat recovery through plate heat exchanger based thermoelectric generator system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 860-865.
    4. Gou, Xiaolong & Xiao, Heng & Yang, Suwen, 2010. "Modeling, experimental study and optimization on low-temperature waste heat thermoelectric generator system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 87(10), pages 3131-3136, October.
    5. Khalil, ALkhadher & Elhassnaoui, Ahmed & Yadir, Said & Abdellatif, Obbadi & Errami, Youssef & Sahnoun, Smail, 2021. "Performance comparison of TEGs for diverse variable leg geometry with the same leg volume," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 224(C).
    6. Wu, Sijie & Zhang, Houcheng & Ni, Meng, 2016. "Performance assessment of a hybrid system integrating a molten carbonate fuel cell and a thermoelectric generator," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 520-527.
    7. Salemme, Lucia & Menna, Laura & Simeone, Marino, 2013. "Calculation of the energy efficiency of fuel processor – PEM (proton exchange membrane) fuel cell systems from fuel elementar composition and heating value," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 368-374.
    8. Elghool, Ali & Basrawi, Firdaus & Ibrahim, Thamir Khalil & Ibrahim, Hassan & Ishak, M. & Hazwan bin Yusof, Mohd & Bagaber, Salem Abdullah, 2020. "Multi-objective optimization to enhance the performance of thermo-electric generator combined with heat pipe-heat sink under forced convection," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 208(C).
    9. Chen, Lingen & Li, Jun & Sun, Fengrui & Wu, Chih, 2005. "Performance optimization of a two-stage semiconductor thermoelectric-generator," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 82(4), pages 300-312, December.
    10. Montecucco, Andrea & Knox, Andrew R., 2014. "Accurate simulation of thermoelectric power generating systems," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 166-172.
    11. Kwan, Trevor Hocksun & Shen, Yongting & Yao, Qinghe, 2019. "An energy management strategy for supplying combined heat and power by the fuel cell thermoelectric hybrid system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 251(C), pages 1-1.
    12. Negash, Assmelash A. & Choi, Young & Kim, Tae Young, 2021. "Experimental investigation of optimal location of flow straightener from the aspects of power output and pressure drop characteristics of a thermoelectric generator," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 219(C).
    13. Adam, Alexandros & Fraga, Eric S. & Brett, Dan J.L., 2018. "A modelling study for the integration of a PEMFC micro-CHP in domestic building services design," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 225(C), pages 85-97.
    14. Sahoo, Rashmi Rekha & Karana, Dhruv Raj, 2020. "Effect of design shape factor on exergonic performance of a new modified extended-tapering segmented thermoelectric generator system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    15. Liu, Hai-Bo & Wang, Shuo-Lin & Yang, Yan-Ru & Chen, Wei-Hsin & Wang, Xiao-Dong, 2020. "Theoretical analysis of performance of variable cross-section thermoelectric generators: Effects of shape factor and thermal boundary conditions," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 201(C).
    16. Yang, Puqing & Zhang, Houcheng, 2015. "Parametric analysis of an irreversible proton exchange membrane fuel cell/absorption refrigerator hybrid system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 458-467.
    17. Gou, Xiaolong & Yang, Suwen & Xiao, Heng & Ou, Qiang, 2013. "A dynamic model for thermoelectric generator applied in waste heat recovery," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 201-209.
    18. Liao, Tianjun & He, Qijiao & Xu, Qidong & Dai, Yawen & Cheng, Chun & Ni, Meng, 2020. "Performance evaluation and optimization of a perovskite solar cell-thermoelectric generator hybrid system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 201(C).
    19. Guo, Xinru & Zhang, Houcheng & Yuan, Jinliang & Wang, Jiatang & Zhao, Jiapei & Wang, Fu & Miao, He & Hou, Shujin, 2019. "Performance assessment of a combined system consisting of a high-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell and a thermoelectric generator," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 762-770.
    20. Chen, Lingen & Sun, Fengrui & Wu, Chih, 2005. "Thermoelectric-generator with linear phenomenological heat-transfer law," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 81(4), pages 358-364, August.
    21. Ming, T. & Wu, Y. & Peng, C. & Tao, Y., 2015. "Thermal analysis on a segmented thermoelectric generator," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 388-399.
    22. Zhang, Houcheng & Xu, Haoran & Chen, Bin & Dong, Feifei & Ni, Meng, 2017. "Two-stage thermoelectric generators for waste heat recovery from solid oxide fuel cells," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 280-288.
    23. Barelli, L. & Bidini, G. & Gallorini, F. & Ottaviano, A., 2012. "Dynamic analysis of PEMFC-based CHP systems for domestic application," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 91(1), pages 13-28.
    24. Ibeagwu, Onyebuchi Isreal, 2019. "Modelling and comprehensive analysis of TEGs with diverse variable leg geometry," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 180(C), pages 90-106.
    25. Kwan, Trevor Hocksun & Katsushi, Fujii & Shen, Yongting & Yin, Shunan & Zhang, Yongchao & Kase, Kiwamu & Yao, Qinghe, 2020. "Comprehensive review of integrating fuel cells to other energy systems for enhanced performance and enabling polygeneration," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    26. Hosseinzadeh, Elham & Rokni, Masoud & Rabbani, Abid & Mortensen, Henrik Hilleke, 2013. "Thermal and water management of low temperature Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell in fork-lift truck power system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 434-444.
    27. Zarifi, Soudmand & Mirhosseini Moghaddam, Maziar, 2020. "Utilizing finned tube economizer for extending the thermal power rate of TEG CHP system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
    28. Hsu, Cheng-Ting & Huang, Gia-Yeh & Chu, Hsu-Shen & Yu, Ben & Yao, Da-Jeng, 2011. "Experiments and simulations on low-temperature waste heat harvesting system by thermoelectric power generators," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 88(4), pages 1291-1297, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ahmad Baroutaji & Arun Arjunan & John Robinson & Tabbi Wilberforce & Mohammad Ali Abdelkareem & Abdul Ghani Olabi, 2021. "PEMFC Poly-Generation Systems: Developments, Merits, and Challenges," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-31, October.
    2. Sun, Yun & Lin, Yixiong & Wang, Qinglian & Yang, Chen & Yin, Wang & Wan, Zhongmin & Qiu, Ting, 2024. "Novel design and numerical investigation of a windward bend flow field for proton exchange membrane fuel cell," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 290(C).
    3. Zou, Wen-Jiang & Kim, Young-Bae & Jung, Seunghun, 2024. "Capacity fade prediction for vanadium redox flow batteries during long-term operations," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 356(C).
    4. Fan, Lixin & Liu, Yang & Luo, Xiaobing & Tu, Zhengkai & Chan, Siew Hwa, 2023. "Comparison and evaluation of mega watts proton exchange membrane fuel cell combined heat and power system under different waste heat recovery methods," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 210(C), pages 295-305.
    5. Tie-Qing Zhang & Seunghun Jung & Young-Bae Kim, 2022. "Hydrogen Production System through Dimethyl Ether Autothermal Reforming, Based on Model Predictive Control," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(23), pages 1-16, November.
    6. Lu, Xinyu & Du, Banghua & Zhu, Wenchao & Yang, Yang & Xie, Changjun & Tu, Zhengkai & Zhao, Bo & Zhang, Leiqi & Wang, Jianqiang & Yang, Zheng, 2024. "Multi-criteria assessment of an auxiliary energy system for desalination plant based on PEMFC-ORC combined heat and power," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 290(C).
    7. Yuan, Yi & Chen, Li & Lyu, Xingbao & Ning, Wenjing & Liu, Wenqi & Tao, Wen-Quan, 2024. "Modeling and optimization of a residential PEMFC-based CHP system under different operating modes," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 353(PA).
    8. Fan, Lixin & Tu, Zhengkai & Chan, Siew Hwa, 2022. "Technological and Engineering design of a megawatt proton exchange membrane fuel cell system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 257(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kwan, Trevor Hocksun & Wu, Xiaofeng & Yao, Qinghe, 2018. "Multi-objective genetic optimization of the thermoelectric system for thermal management of proton exchange membrane fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 314-327.
    2. Massaguer, A. & Massaguer, E. & Comamala, M. & Pujol, T. & González, J.R. & Cardenas, M.D. & Carbonell, D. & Bueno, A.J., 2018. "A method to assess the fuel economy of automotive thermoelectric generators," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 222(C), pages 42-58.
    3. Guo, Xinru & Zhang, Houcheng & Yuan, Jinliang & Wang, Jiatang & Zhao, Jiapei & Wang, Fu & Miao, He & Hou, Shujin, 2019. "Performance assessment of a combined system consisting of a high-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell and a thermoelectric generator," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 762-770.
    4. Abdollahipour, Armin & Sayyaadi, Hoseyn, 2021. "Thermal energy recovery of molten carbonate fuel cells by thermally regenerative electrochemical cycles," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 227(C).
    5. Wang, Yuchao & Dai, Chuanshan & Wang, Shixue, 2013. "Theoretical analysis of a thermoelectric generator using exhaust gas of vehicles as heat source," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 1171-1180.
    6. Jinlong Chen & Kewen Li & Changwei Liu & Mao Li & Youchang Lv & Lin Jia & Shanshan Jiang, 2017. "Enhanced Efficiency of Thermoelectric Generator by Optimizing Mechanical and Electrical Structures," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-15, September.
    7. Gou, Xiaolong & Yang, Suwen & Xiao, Heng & Ou, Qiang, 2013. "A dynamic model for thermoelectric generator applied in waste heat recovery," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 201-209.
    8. Liang, Gaowei & Zhou, Jiemin & Huang, Xuezhang, 2011. "Analytical model of parallel thermoelectric generator," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 88(12), pages 5193-5199.
    9. Xiong, Bing & Chen, Lingen & Meng, Fankai & Sun, Fengrui, 2014. "Modeling and performance analysis of a two-stage thermoelectric energy harvesting system from blast furnace slag water waste heat," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 562-569.
    10. Lee, HoSung, 2013. "Optimal design of thermoelectric devices with dimensional analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 79-88.
    11. He, Zhi-Zhu, 2020. "A coupled electrical-thermal impedance matching model for design optimization of thermoelectric generator," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 269(C).
    12. Tian, Hua & Sun, Xiuxiu & Jia, Qi & Liang, Xingyu & Shu, Gequn & Wang, Xu, 2015. "Comparison and parameter optimization of a segmented thermoelectric generator by using the high temperature exhaust of a diesel engine," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 121-130.
    13. Lan, Song & Yang, Zhijia & Chen, Rui & Stobart, Richard, 2018. "A dynamic model for thermoelectric generator applied to vehicle waste heat recovery," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 210(C), pages 327-338.
    14. Junpeng Liu & Yajing Sun & Gang Chen & Pengcheng Zhai, 2023. "Performance Analysis of Variable Cross-Section TEGs under Constant Heat Flux Conditions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(11), pages 1-16, June.
    15. Han, Yuan & Lai, Cong & Li, Jiarui & Zhang, Zhufeng & Zhang, Houcheng & Hou, Shujin & Wang, Fu & Zhao, Jiapei & Zhang, Chunfei & Miao, He & Yuan, Jinliang, 2022. "Elastocaloric cooler for waste heat recovery from proton exchange membrane fuel cells," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 238(PA).
    16. Kwan, Trevor Hocksun & Wu, Xiaofeng & Yao, Qinghe, 2018. "Bidirectional operation of the thermoelectric device for active temperature control of fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 222(C), pages 410-422.
    17. Ding, L.C. & Akbarzadeh, A. & Tan, L., 2018. "A review of power generation with thermoelectric system and its alternative with solar ponds," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P1), pages 799-812.
    18. Yang, Yurong & Wang, Shixue & Zhu, Yu, 2020. "Evaluation method for assessing heat transfer enhancement effect on performance improvement of thermoelectric generator systems," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 263(C).
    19. Massaguer, E. & Massaguer, A. & Montoro, L. & Gonzalez, J.R., 2014. "Development and validation of a new TRNSYS type for the simulation of thermoelectric generators," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 65-74.
    20. Kim, Hoon & Kim, Woochul, 2015. "A way of achieving a low $/W and a decent power output from a thermoelectric device," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 205-211.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:energy:v:229:y:2021:i:c:s0360544221009464. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/energy .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.