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Performance Analysis of a Thermoelectric Generation System with Different Flow Configurations

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Abstract

Thermoelectric technology is an unconventional approach for renewable energy generation with the aim of reducing waste via improved overall efficiency. There is a primary need to develop such environmentally friendly systems that can harness readily available renewable energy resources and utilize them for power generation at reduced cost. Such systems enable conversion of waste heat. In this work, the effects of four parameters, i.e., the quantity and quality of heat, the composition of the waste stream in liquid phase, and losses during conversion, on the conversion efficiency are studied, and a method proposed to measure them instead of using the rating provided by the manufacturer. The results show that the heat exchanger configuration has an important impact on the power generation established through parallel and counterflow arrangements. The temperature difference (heat quality) achieved between the hot and cold fluid is lower in case of a counterflow heat exchanger if the other parameters remain the same. The counterflow configuration is more effective than the parallel flow configuration, but suffers from greater convective losses. Higher thermal energy consumption is noted in case of parallel flow due to the uneven temperature difference along the flow passage.

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Acknowledgments

The authors sincerely acknowledge BIT Sindri and IIT (ISM) Dhanbad for the development of the experimental setup. We also acknowledge Prof. S.C. Roy and N.P. Choudhry of the Mechanical Engineering Department, BIT Sindri, India for providing valuable suggestions and help. This research did not receive any specific grants from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, BIT Sindri, Dhanbad, 828123, India

    Samarjeet Kumar, Swaroop Kumar Mandal & Purushottam Kumar Singh

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, 144411, India

    Santosh Kumar Mishra

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (ISM) Dhanbad, Dhanbad, 826004, India

    Alok Kumar Das

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  1. Samarjeet Kumar
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Correspondence to Purushottam Kumar Singh.

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Kumar, S., Mandal, S.K., Singh, P.K. et al. Performance Analysis of a Thermoelectric Generation System with Different Flow Configurations. J. Electron. Mater. 48, 4607–4617 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-019-07249-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-019-07249-9

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