A temperature-variant method for performance modeling and economic analysis of thermoelectric generators: Linking material properties to real-world conditions

Abstract

h i g h l i g h t sA numerical method predicts power and financial costs of a thermoelectric generator. Temperature-dependent, experimental materials properties and variable heat sources are used. Sensitivity analyses show improvements can be made by choosing higher temperature heat sources. Optimizing the choice of heat exchanger lowers cost. A higher figure of merit improves performance and lowers cost. t r a c tA new methodology for the systematic study of thermoelectric generator (TEG) design and economic analysis is presented, with the objective of assessing the performance and financial feasibility of smallscale TEG installations, for 4 leading candidate thermoelectric materials. Temperature of a steam trap pipe surface were measured at the University of California Davis Pilot Brewery, and device performance was modeled using the finite-element modeling software ANSYS. The model integrated temperaturedependent material properties from leading candidate thermoelectric materials and experimental time-variant temperature data. Calculated power outputs were utilized in a net present value (NPV) framework to assess the financial feasibility and economic implications of small scale TEG installations, as well as to address the aspects of TEG research, design and implementation which have potential for rapid and substantive improvement. This model, along with case study results, provides a powerful platform for analyzing the performance of real-world systems and can be used to predict where further technological development on TEG materials and devices would be most effective. It is found that a BiSbTe based TEG generated the highest power output at the measured temperatures and consequently resulted in the highest NPV at the end of 25 years. Sensitivity analysis of the NPV revealed a strong dependence on the heat-exchanger cost, highlighting the importance of efficient heat transfer design. The zT necessary for a 7-year payback period as a function of the capital cost and hot-side temperature was also calculated for a SiGe based TEG.

Isovalent substitution in metal chalcogenide materials for improving thermoelectric power generation – A critical review

“…Over the past few decades, several techniques for enhancing TE materials have emerged. Some techniques that aim to enhance the power factor are resonant state doping [71], band convergence [75], quantum confinement [76], minority carrier blocking [77], while others focus on reducing the total thermal conductivity using nanostructuring [69][70][71], hierarchical architecture [72][73][74], Researchers have employed the above techniques to improve the TE properties of all kinds of materials, including MCs [75][76][77], skutterudites [78][79][80][81], half Heusler [82][83][84], silicide [85,86] and oxides [87][88][89][90]. Focusing on enhancing TE performance in MCs using isovalent substitution, it will be shown below how it has revolutionised the thermoelectricity sector.…”

Advances and outlook of TE-PCM system: a review

“…It can directly convert solar energy into thermal energy via absorber or collector, electrical energy can be also produced using a power block (TEG or vapour turbine) driven by concentrated heliostats [124][125][126]. For some special designs where the input heat flux (free or inexpensive) is widely available, the financial profitability of TEG has been significantly improved [127][128][129][130][131]. At this time, using thermal energy from sunlight as the heat source of TEG is a promising option, especially in the case of obtaining heat and electricity simultaneously in the same system or process.…”

Power optimization and economic evaluation of thermoelectric waste heat recovery system around a rotary cement kiln

“…Following calculation of the maximum power generation from the ten thermoelectric units, an economic evaluation for them is furthermore carried out to find the financial feasibility of the system. Different types of costs in economic evaluation of a thermoelectric system have been considered previously (Benday et al 2017;Kishita et al 2016;LeBlanc 2014;LeBlanc et al 2014;Yee et al 2013). In this study, various cost contributions…”