Thermoelectric Power Generation

The vast majority of government-sponsored research in the field of thermoelectrics over the past 10-15 years has been in the area of thermoelectric power generation. The driving force behind most of this research seeks ways to improve our utilization of energy. Consider that less than a fourth of the energy content in the gasoline in your car actually goes into useful work to move the vehicle. The majority of the energy escapes as heat loss to the ambient primarily through the vehicle exhaust and radiator. Likewise, the U.S. manufacturing industry discharges roughly onethird of the energy consumed as thermal losses to the atmosphere or to cooling systems. This heat loss is measured in Quads (1015 Btu!!) and represents a huge opportunity for thermoelectrics to someday impact national energy consumption and our dependence on foreign fuel. Thermoelectric waste heat recovery is the process of recapturing this lost heat and converting it to electrical power. This is the primary focus of most DOE, DARPA, and DoD research for new, more efficient power generator materials and devices. For any thermoelectric power generator (TEG), the voltage (V) generated by a TEG is directly proportional to the number of couples (N) and the temperature difference ( T) between the top and bottom sides of the TEG and the Seebeck coefficients of the n- and p-type materials ( p and p respectively).

Power output from a TEG is a function of the temperatures, the materials (and device effective) figure of merit (ZT) and also a function of how well the generator resistance (R) matches the resistance of the attached electrical load (RLoad).

Where Figure 1 To convert waste heat at reasonable efficiencies, one needs a) large temperature differences (hundreds of degrees C), b) high figure of merit (ZT) materials (ZT=1 or higher), and c) the ability to match the electrical loads with the thermoelectric resistance. In addition, any high ZT material must be capable of being incorporated into a device without significant losses that would degrade the device effective ZT in order to achieve the efficiencies described in the equations above. As depicted in Figure 1, heat flow from the exhaust stream must be extracted and conducted through the TEG in order to be converted. This heat must then be exhausted at a lower temperature to maintain the desired temperature difference across the TEG. While waste heat recovery is the driving force for much of the TE power generation research, other application areas could utilize many of the same material and device advancements, namely direct generation, co-generation and energy harvesting.

Figure 2 In direct thermoelectric power generation, the heat, which powers the TEG, is not a byproduct of another process or operation but rather the result of fuel combustion with the sole intent of producing heat to power a TE generator as depicted in Figure 2. Historically, thermoelectric direct combustion mainly has provided power in remote locations, including pipeline cathodic protection or telecommunications stations. More recently, researchers have investigated small-scale direct generation to replace batteries and to produce power sources that are smaller, lighter and longer lasting than the best battery technologies. This concept generally utilizes hydrocarbon fuels, which have energy contents in excess of 12,000 W-hr/kg. Contrast this with Li-Ion battery technology with an energy density of 145 W-hr/kg, and one can see that if one combines a) efficient combustion, b) controlled heat losses, c) a modest TE conversion efficiency and d) a managed balance of plant (pump and fan) power consumptions, one could create power sources that have energy densities that are many times higher than the best battery technologies. Someday, your laptop or cordless drill may be powered by a thermoelectric generator. Figure 3 Co-generation is another area that can benefit from efficient, higher temperature materials and devices. In waste heat recovery and direct generation, efficiency is paramount since the heat that passes through the TE generator is either converted to electrical power or exhausted to the ambient. In a co-generation application, however, efficiency may not be the most important factor. In most thermoelectric co-generation applications, heat is produced generally by combusting a hydrocarbon fuel. The combustion temperature of hydrocarbon fuels is generally above 1500C. Because the heater must diffuse high temperature heat to provide heating at a lower temperature, this is an ideal place to insert TE generators operating within this temperature difference as depicted schematically in Figure 3. The heat exhausted by the TEG is the useful work. A prime example of TE co-generation is the self-powered Army tent heater. In this application, diesel or JP-8 is combusted to provide heating for the tent. The tent does not need 1500 C heat, but heat at a much lower temperature. The TEG, from a system standpoint, operates at 100% efficiency. No heat is wasted. It either generates electrical power or heats the tent. Of course, in real life you probably do not want combustion exhaust venting into the tent, and some additional heat exchanger is required. The amount of TEG power produced is obviously a function of the TEG actual efficiency, but the overall system efficiency is unchanged by the TEG efficiency, just the ratio of power out vs. heat out. Thermoelectric energy harvesting is similar to waste heat recovery yet contains a number of differences that warrant separate consideration. Energy harvesting applications are generally characterized by the following:

y Low power output is generally designed to power a single wireless sensor y Temperature differences are generally small y Natural convection heat sinks dissipate the heat from the TEG since produced y
power is insufficient to operate a fan TEGs for energy harvesting generally require many, many, very tall, small cross-section TE elements in order to produce sufficient voltage to power the circuit or a step up circuit While virtually all TE cooling applications utilize thermoelectric devices produced with bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3) thermoelectric materials, TEGs for waste heat recovery, co-generation or direct generation can span a much larger

range of temperatures and therefore may incorporate different families of thermoelectric materials (lead tellurides, skutterudites, clathrates, etc.). Energy harvesting applications may be lower temperature, and Bi2Te3 may be the preferred material. One common misconception about TE generators is that they convert temperature differences into electrical power. To be more accurate, they convert a heat flow caused by the temperature difference and thermal conductivity of the TE device into electrical power. The efficiency of the generator is a function of the temperatures and temperature difference, and unless heat is conducted through the TEG, it is not converted. Because of this, heat exchanger design and optimization is a critical part of the TEG design necessary to achieve the maximum power output. Historically, thermoelectric generators were only known for their use in power sources for deep space probes where the radioactive decay of nuclear fuels supplied the heat to power the radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG). Today, the potential for many more applications beyond space RTGs are being considered as new power generation materials and devices mature and start being produced at reasonable costs.