Hydrothermal fluid ejector for enhanced heat transfer of a thermoelectric power generator on the seafloor

Gai, Xiaotao; Wu, Shijun; Yang, Canjun

doi:10.1039/d1se00653c

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…It is noteworthy that one species of white skate has been recently reported to brilliantly utilize hydrothermal heat for egg-case incubation, inspiring embodied energy harvesting/regeneration for deep-sea soft machines 23 . Driven by seafloor volcanism, hydrothermal vents are among the most spectacular features on the seabed and contain enormous thermal energy, which holds promising potential for exploitation [6][7][8] . In the future, untethered soft robots integrated with thermal electric skins-an energy harvesting system, may thrive near hydrothermal vents to derive energy, thus, unleashing the possibility of long-term and self-contained mission 96 .…”

Section: Challenges and Outlooksmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The exploration of Earth’s oceans presents a highly significant endeavor, holding the potential to unravel oceanic mysteries 1 and unveil concealed marine biodiversity 2 – 4 , energy resources 5 – 8 , and mineral reserves 9 , 10 . Despite recent advances in exploring the ocean’s shallow layers 11 – 13 , the profound depths of the deep sea present daunting challenges marked by extreme hydrostatic pressure, chilling temperatures, and perpetual darkness 14 – 16 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Bioinspired soft robots for deep-sea exploration

Li,

Wong,

Shih

et al. 2023

Nat Commun

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The deep ocean, Earth’s untouched expanse, presents immense challenges for exploration due to its extreme pressure, temperature, and darkness. Unlike traditional marine robots that require specialized metallic vessels for protection, deep-sea species thrive without such cumbersome pressure-resistant designs. Their pressure-adaptive forms, unique propulsion methods, and advanced senses have inspired innovation in designing lightweight, compact soft machines. This perspective addresses challenges, recent strides, and design strategies for bioinspired deep-sea soft robots. Drawing from abyssal life, it explores the actuation, sensing, power, and pressure resilience of multifunctional deep-sea soft robots, offering game-changing solutions for profound exploration and operation in harsh conditions.

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Section: Challenges and Outlooksmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bioinspired soft robots for deep-sea exploration

Li,

Wong,

Shih

et al. 2023

Nat Commun

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“…Testing of the TEG indicated that the equipment could be used in shallow seas to a depth of 500 m. In ref. [70], the experiment uses the temperature difference between hydro‐thermal fluid and seawater to provide energy for long‐term seafloor observation systems which operated without batteries. In ref.…”

Section: Application Areasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thermoelectric energy harvesting for internet of things devices using machine learning: A review

Kucova,

Prauzek,

Konecny

et al. 2023

CAAI Trans on Intel Tech

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Initiatives to minimise battery use, address sustainability, and reduce regular maintenance have driven the challenge to use alternative power sources to supply energy to devices deployed in Internet of Things (IoT) networks. As a key pillar of fifth generation (5G) and beyond 5G networks,IoT is estimated to reach 42 billion devices by the year 2025. Thermoelectric generators (TEGs) are solid state energy harvesters which reliably and renewably convert thermal energy into electrical energy. These devices are able to recover lost thermal energy, produce energy in extreme environments, generate electric power in remote areas, and power micro‐sensors. Applying the state of the art, the authorspresent a comprehensive review of machine learning (ML) approaches applied in combination with TEG‐powered IoT devices to manage and predict available energy. The application areas of TEG‐driven IoT devices that exploit as a heat source the temperature differences found in the environment, biological structures, machines, and other technologies are summarised. Based on detailed research of the state of the art in TEG‐powered devices, the authors investigated the research challenges, applied algorithms and application areas of this technology. The aims of the research were to devise new energy prediction and energy management systems based on ML methods, create supervised algorithms which better estimate incoming energy, and develop unsupervised and semi‐supervised approaches which provide adaptive and dynamic operation. The review results indicate that TEGs are a suitable energy harvesting technology for low‐power applications through their scalability, usability in ubiquitous temperature difference scenarios, and long operating lifetime. However, TEGs also have low energy efficiency (around 10%) and require a relatively constant heat source.

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“…The huge temperature difference between the inside and outside of the chimney will cause significant differences in both the concentration and the kinetic energy of excited electrons in these sulfides, thus providing a driving force for carriers flowing from the hot to the cold side to yield natural currents. Through a heat pipe to harvest seafloor hydrothermal energy, thermoelectric converters have been developed to continuously produce 2.6–3.9 W electric power in deep‐sea black smokers (Gai et al., 2021; Xie et al., 2016). However, to our knowledge, few studies have considered this electron energy transfer pathway based on the thermoelectric effect of minerals in hydrothermal vents.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficient Thermoelectric Conversion of Sulfide Chimneys in Submarine Volcanic Systems

Jia,

Zhu,

et al. 2024

Earth and Space Science

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Submarine volcanos are the most active areas in the deep sea, but the environmental consequences of frequent volcanic activity on the geophysical fields and biogeochemical processes near hydrothermal chimneys have not been fully understood yet. In particular, how continuous high‐flux thermal energy, the most typical form of energy in active submarine volcanic systems, affects electron transport and geoelectric field remains unknown. This study provides the first evidence that thermal energy can be efficiently converted to electrical energy at an extremely small spatial scale of the submarine black chimneys. The Seebeck coefficient of sulfide chimneys can reach more than 200 μV/K, with high electrical conductivity of 104 S/m and low thermal conductivity of 1.0 W/(m·K) within 300–700 K. A maximal potential gradient of 300 mV/cm under a temperature difference of 300–700 K can be generated by the thermoelectric conversion of sulfide chimneys, with a maximum energy converting efficiency up to 1%. The thermoelectric conversion effect of a global‐scale submarine volcanos could enable electroactive bacteria to fix appromaxiately 105–106 tons of carbon per year. In addition, the thermal‐electrochemical experiments indicated sulfides underwent rapid oxidation under thermoelectric effects, which may help explain the intense oxidative weathering of sulfides in some anoxic deep‐sea hydrothermal zones.

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Hydrothermal fluid ejector for enhanced heat transfer of a thermoelectric power generator on the seafloor

Abstract: Interest in deep-sea hydrothermal research has been rapidly increasing. Advances in methods for harvesting energy from hydrothermal vents will facilitate long-term seafloor observation systems do not rely on batteries. A...

Cited by 8 publications

References 27 publications

Bioinspired soft robots for deep-sea exploration

Bioinspired soft robots for deep-sea exploration

Thermoelectric energy harvesting for internet of things devices using machine learning: A review

Efficient Thermoelectric Conversion of Sulfide Chimneys in Submarine Volcanic Systems

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