An approach to design a 90 Sr radioisotope thermoelectric generator using analytical and Monte Carlo methods with ANSYS, COMSOL, and MCNP

High Performance Thermoelectric Materials: Progress and Their Applications

“…Usually, the hot side temperature of the TE devices in the RTGs is controlled within the range of 800-1200 K, [249,265,266,270,271] so that the components of the devices are chosen from high performance TE materials with intermediate and high application temperatures, namely, PbTe [44] and SiGe. Usually, the hot side temperature of the TE devices in the RTGs is controlled within the range of 800-1200 K, [249,265,266,270,271] so that the components of the devices are chosen from high performance TE materials with intermediate and high application temperatures, namely, PbTe [44] and SiGe.…”

“…[19] A 5 W PbTe-based RTG was first fabricated in 1959, [44] and then the PbTe system was replaced by the SiGe alloy due to its higher operational temperature. [19,249,250,265] However, the output power is more important than the system efficiency, and the output power can be varied from a few milliwatts to several hundreds of watts depending upon the size (or mass) of the RTGs. [19,249,250,265] However, the output power is more important than the system efficiency, and the output power can be varied from a few milliwatts to several hundreds of watts depending upon the size (or mass) of the RTGs.…”

“…[19,44] Limited by the ZT values (<2 or even lower) of current commercial TE materials and the electrical and thermal losses of devices, the system efficiency of RTGs is usually ≈8% or lower. [19,249,270,272] In the past several decades, extensive effort has been made to increase the specific power of RTGs through rational design of devices [19,249,250,265,272] and seeking for better TE materials with higher ZT. [19,249,270,272] In the past several decades, extensive effort has been made to increase the specific power of RTGs through rational design of devices [19,249,250,265,272] and seeking for better TE materials with higher ZT.…”

“…TE devices have long been applied as they can achieve solid state power generation or refrigeration without any noise or vibration, showing many advantages such as high sensitivity to temperature change and emission‐free operation. Such features become huge advantages when TE materials are utilized in various fields such as remote power supply (radioisotope thermoelectric generators, RTGs), automotives, temperature sensors, control devices, water condensation, and implantable/wearable devices . Up to now, significant progress has been made in developing high performance TE devices, which will be introduced below in detail.…”

Development of Micro-radioisotope Thermoelectric Power Supply for Deep Space Exploration Distributed Wireless Sensor Network

“…The structure and size of the TE converter need to be optimized for different radioisotope heat sources. The power has stable output performance, sustainable operation, and strong environmental adaptability [1][2][3][4][5][6]. The miniaturized RTG can be applied in long-term service meteorological/seismic monitoring stations that are widely distributed on the surface of the planet, small landing vehicles at extreme latitudes or areas with low solar flux, atmosphericsurface-flow monitoring systems, underground detectors [7], deep space micro spacecraft [8], wireless sensor networks [9], self-powered radiation sensors [10], deep-space robot probes [11], and radio observatories on the lunar surface [12].…”