DYNAMIC PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS OF A THERMOELECTRIC GENERATOR

Year 2019, Volume: 5 Issue: 5, 385 - 395, 22.09.2019

Ahmed S. El-adl,

https://doi.org/10.18186/thermal.623206

Cited By: 1

Abstract

A thermoelectric
generator (TEG) is a device that transforms thermal energy directly into
electrical power by exploiting the Seebeck effect. In the current study, the
dynamic performance characteristics of a TEG is experimentally studied under
different operating conditions. The Influence of input heat rate and the
influence of utilizing extended surfaces (fins) on both transient and
steady-state performance of a TEG are experimentally investigated. The
variation in the temperatures of the TEG hot-and cold-side in addition to the
output voltage is taken as a denotation of the performance characteristics.
Input heating rate of 15.0 W, 17.5 W, 20.0 W, 22.0W and 25.0 W are applied to
the TEG hot-side. Free air convection (FC) is utilized for heat dissipation
from the TEG module through the cold-side. From the experimentation, it can be
concluded that increasing the input heating rate provides a higher temperature
difference between the module sides leading to higher power output.
Additionally, using fins to aid heat dissipations improved the TEG performance
by lowering the temperature of the cold-side and increasing the temperature
difference across the module. The experimental data collected are compared with
the data obtainable by the TEG module manufacturer and an excellent concordat
is acquired.

Keywords

Thermoelectric Generator (TEG), Fins, Seebeck Effect

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