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Comparison of Cooling Methods for a Thermoelectric Generator with Forced Convection

Author

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  • Young Hoo Cho

    (School of Electrical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291, Daehak-ro, Daejeon 34141, Korea)

  • Jaehyun Park

    (School of Electrical Engineering, University of Ulsan, Ulsan 44610, Korea)

  • Naehyuck Chang

    (School of Electrical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291, Daehak-ro, Daejeon 34141, Korea)

  • Jaemin Kim

    (Department of Electronics Engineering, Myongji University, Yongin 17058, Korea)

Abstract

A thermoelectric generator (TEG) is a clean electricity generator from a heat source, usually waste heat. However, it is not as widely utilized as other electricity generators due to low conversion efficiency from heat to electricity. One approach is a system-level net power optimization for a TEG system composed of TEGs, heat sink, and fans. In this paper, we propose airflow reuse after cooling preceding TEGs to maximize system net power. For the accurate system net power, we model the TEG system, air, and heat source with proper dimension and material characteristics, and simulate with a computational fluid dynamics program. Next, the TEG power generation and the fan power consumption are calculated in consideration of the Seebeck coefficient and internal electrical resistance varying with hot and cold side temperatures. Finally, we find the optimal number of TEGs and fan speed generating the most efficient system net power in various TEG systems. The results show that the system with a side fan with a specific number of TEGs provides a system net power up to 58.6% higher than when with a top fan. The most efficient system net power with the side fan increases up to four TEGs generating 1.907 W at 13,000 RPM.

Suggested Citation

  • Young Hoo Cho & Jaehyun Park & Naehyuck Chang & Jaemin Kim, 2020. "Comparison of Cooling Methods for a Thermoelectric Generator with Forced Convection," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-19, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:13:y:2020:i:12:p:3185-:d:373701
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Olle Högblom & Ronnie Andersson, 2020. "Multiphysics CFD Simulation for Design and Analysis of Thermoelectric Power Generation," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-15, August.
    3. Wenlong Yang & Wenchao Zhu & Yang Yang & Liang Huang & Ying Shi & Changjun Xie, 2022. "Thermoelectric Performance Evaluation and Optimization in a Concentric Annular Thermoelectric Generator under Different Cooling Methods," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-21, March.

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