Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Nov 5;13(11):1915.
doi: 10.3390/mi13111915.

Computer Simulations of Silicide-Tetrahedrite Thermoelectric Generators

Rodrigo Coelho  1 , Álvaro Casi  2 , Miguel Araiz  2 , David Astrain  2 , Elsa Branco Lopes  1 , Francisco P Brito  3 , António P Gonçalves  1
Affiliations

Computer Simulations of Silicide-Tetrahedrite Thermoelectric Generators

Rodrigo Coelho et al. Micromachines (Basel). .

Abstract

With global warming and rising energy demands, it is important now than ever to transit to renewable energy systems. Thermoelectric (TE) devices can present a feasible alternative to generate clean energy from waste heat. However, to become attractive for large-scale applications, such devices must be cheap, efficient, and based on ecofriendly materials. In this study, the potential of novel silicide-tetrahedrite modules for energy generation was examined. Computer simulations based on the finite element method (FEM) and implicit finite difference method (IFDM) were performed. The developed computational models were validated against data measured on a customized system working with commercial TE devices. The models were capable of predicting the TEGs' behavior with low deviations (≤10%). IFDM was used to study the power produced by the silicide-tetrahedrite TEGs for different ΔT between the sinks, whereas FEM was used to study the temperature distributions across the testing system in detail. To complement these results, the influence of the electrical and thermal contact resistances was evaluated. High thermal resistances were found to affect the devices ΔT up to ~15%, whereas high electrical contact resistances reduced the power output of the silicide-tetrahedrite TEGs by more than ~85%.

Keywords: computer simulations; finite element method; implicit differential method; magnesium silicides; silicide-tetrahedrite modules; tetrahedrites; thermoelectric devices.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Experimental set up.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The 3D CAD geometries used to simulate the whole testing system (M1) and a TE module (M2).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Schematic of the thermal resistances of the simulated TEGs.
Figure 4
Figure 4
(a) Typical IV and IP curves for the maximum power obtained when the sink ΔT was 163 K, and (b) power vs. temperature difference (heat source and sinks) for the GM200 simulated and tested in the experimental set up.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Power as a function of the ΔT between sinks (IFDM 1D).
Figure 6
Figure 6
Efficiency of the TEM as a function of the heat flux (IFDM 1D).
Figure 7
Figure 7
(a) Temperature distribution across the testing system using the GM200 device; (b) temperature distribution from a vertical plane cut taken at the middle of the plate; (c) temperature distribution on the top of the TEG legs (hot zone); (d) temperature distribution on the bottom of the TEG legs (cold zone).
Figure 8
Figure 8
(a) Temperature distribution across the testing system when using the silicide-tetrahedrite TEG with a conventional geometry; (b) temperature distribution from a vertical plane cut taken from the middle of the plate; (c) temperature distribution on the top of the TEG legs (hot zone); (d) temperature distribution on the bottom of the TEG legs (cold zone).
Figure 9
Figure 9
(a) Temperature distribution across the testing system when using silicide-tetrahedrite TEG with optimized geometry; (b) temperature distribution from a vertical plane cut taken from the middle of the plate; (c) temperature distribution on the top of the TEG legs (hot zone); (d) temperature distribution on the bottom of the TEG legs (cold zone).
Figure 10
Figure 10
Influence of TEG surface thermal resistance on module ΔT. Simulations were performed using the GM200 device.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Contact resistance influence on the power produced by a silicide-tetrahedrite TEG (optimized geometry) for fixed hot- and cold-side temperatures of 568 and 321 K, respectively.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Tsai H.L., Lin J.M. Model Building and Simulation of Thermoelectric Module Using Matlab/Simulink. J. Electron. Mater. 2010;39:2105–2111. doi: 10.1007/s11664-009-0994-x. - DOI
    1. Zhang Q.H., Huang X.Y., Bai S.Q., Shi X., Uher C., Chen L.D. Thermoelectric Devices for Power Generation: Recent Progress and Future Challenges. Adv. Eng. Mater. 2016;18:194–213. doi: 10.1002/adem.201500333. - DOI
    1. Jaziri N., Boughamoura A., Müller J., Mezghani B., Tounsi F., Ismail M. A Comprehensive Review of Thermoelectric Generators: Technologies and Common Applications. Energy Rep. 2020;6:264–287. doi: 10.1016/j.egyr.2019.12.011. - DOI
    1. Mamur H., Dilmaç Ö.F., Begum J., Bhuiyan M.R.A. Thermoelectric Generators Act as Renewable Energy Sources. Clean. Mater. 2021;2:100030. doi: 10.1016/j.clema.2021.100030. - DOI
    1. Charilaou K., Kyratsi T., Louca L.S. Design of an Air-Cooled Thermoelectric Generator System through Modelling and Simulations, for Use in Cement Industries. Mater. Today Proc. 2020;44:3516–3524. doi: 10.1016/j.matpr.2020.11.392. - DOI

LinkOut - more resources