ARTICLE:

• Thermoelectric Power Generation Using Two Thermal Fluids  download article

Ryosuke O. Suzuki
Department of Energy Science and Technology, Kyoto University, Yoshida-Honmachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501 Japan

ABSTRACT

For the larger power generation at the wider thermoelectric panel in near future, the heat will be extracted from a hot source by a fluid, and it flows along a surface of the thermoelectric panel. The optimum system design of the thermoelectric power generator was studied using several fluid models. The heat transfer through the panel and the temperature change along the flow direction were calculated by solving the heat balance equations. The obtainable power is shown in the analytical expressions in all the system designs, and it commonly showed the maximum at a certain panel dimension, due to the serial connection of thermoelectric modules and the temperature change of the two fluids. The optimum conditions for the maximum output power depended on the panel dimension, heat transfer coefficient, the thermo-physical properties of the thermoelectric materials and the fluids. The thermoelectric panels can be piled up or bended to save the spaces and the material. After the optimized arrangements, the systems consisting of the multiple panels can generate the similar maximum power with the single panel under the same fluid conditions. These systems can save the material and the space.

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