Advantage of a Thermoelectric Generator with Hybridization of Segmented Materials and Irregularly Variable Cross-Section Design

Abstract

As a direct energy converter between heat and electricity, thermoelectric generators (TEGs) have potential applications including recovery of waste heat, and solar thermoelectric power generation. Geometric parameter and material are two critical factors to improve the TEG performance. However, the strategies base on structure design and material development are always separated. There are limited studies on the effects of consolidating them simultaneously. Here, an idea of segmented material coupled with irregularly variable cross-section design was conceived to further improve the TEG output power. The performance of TEGs with rectangular leg, segmented leg, variable cross-sectional leg, and the new design are compared. The coupling effects between various mechanisms are revealed, which are responsible for the superior performance provided by the developed design. Based on this knowledge, a multiparameters optimization was performed through the genetic algorithm to reach the optimal combination of design parameters. The results show that, with a constraint of certain material volume, the optimal performance of the TEG can be further enhanced by coupling segmented material and irregularly variable cross-section design. An improvement of 51.71% was achieved when compared with the conventional counterpart. This work offers a simple route to enhance the TEG performance when the device materials are specified, without an increase in the cost of manufacturing.

A Review of Thermoelectric Generators in Automobile Waste Heat Recovery Systems for Improving Energy Utilization

“…The authors also proposed that 2n-1p segmentation is the best performing in terms of power and conversion efficiency. Zhang et al [194] optimized the geometry of a segmented TEG with an irregularly variable cross-section design, utilizing a genetic algorithm. They determined that only segmentation or a variable cross-section design could achieve the optimum design for a fixed thermoelectric material volume.…”

Study of Diverse Leg Geometry Effect on the Performance of Segmented Thermoelectric Generator with the Same Leg Volume

“…The internal resistance of Bismuth Telluride and modified Lead Telluride (p-n type) shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2 can be written by the Eqs. ( 16) - (18); )}…”

“…While the heat on the cold side is losing by natural convection. Design [18], Compare the performance of TEGs was performed, with a rectangular leg, segmented leg, and a variable cross-sectional leg to optimize the performance of TEG. The results showed that segmented TEG presented output power the highest than traditional TEG of about 51.71 %.…”

Nuclear batteries: Current context and near‐term expectations

“…The analysis of recent literature evidences an ever increasing number of innovative technological approaches capable to improve the conversion efficiency of radioscope thermoelectric batteries and to allow a miniaturization of the devices. Due to the multiple physical processes involved in the conversion of heat in electricity, there are several ways of addressing such a demanding task 41 . However, it has been highlighted that the greatest effects on the performances of a RTG are produced by the design and the materials of the legs.…”

“…Due to the multiple physical processes involved in the conversion of heat in electricity, there are several ways of addressing such a demanding task. 41 However, it has been highlighted that the greatest effects on the performances of a RTG are produced by the design and the materials of the legs. Consequently the development of precise structural arrangements and the exploration of new thermoelectric materials have been the main objective of recent researches, that generated the aforementioned "proof-of-concept."…”