Thermogalvanic waste heat recovery system in automobiles

Andrey Gunawan; Nicholas W. Fette; Patrick Phelan

doi:10.1115/POWER201549094

Thermogalvanic waste heat recovery system in automobiles

Andrey Gunawan, Nicholas W. Fette, Patrick Phelan

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Recovering waste heat from automobiles remains an inviting subject for research. Solid-state thermoelectric generators (TEGs) have been widely investigated for this purpose, but their practical application remains challenging. An alternative to TEGs are thermogalvanic cells. Temperature difference between hot and cold electrodes creates a potential difference. Once connected to a load, electrical current and power are delivered, converting heat into electricity. In this work, we investigate the feasibility of incorporating such systems into automobiles. We carry out the experiments under real-world conditions. A climate-controlled wind tunnel is built to provide equivalent conditions to the ambient air stream under the car. The demonstrated system achieved a power density on the order of mW m^-2. We compare the power generated to those of TEGs currently tested by GM, Honda, BMW and Ford. Further, a simple economic estimation is calculated to assess the $ per Watt cost of future practical thermogalvanic waste heat recovery system.

Original language	English (US)
Title of host publication	American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Power Division (Publication) POWER
Publisher	American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
Volume	2015-January
ISBN (Print)	9780791856604
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1115/POWER201549094
State	Published - 2015
Event	ASME 2015 Power Conference, POWER 2015, collocated with the ASME 2015 9th International Conference on Energy Sustainability, the ASME 2015 13th International Conference on Fuel Cell Science, Engineering and Technology, and the ASME 2015 Nuclear Forum - San Diego, United States Duration: Jun 28 2015 → Jul 2 2015

Other

Other	ASME 2015 Power Conference, POWER 2015, collocated with the ASME 2015 9th International Conference on Energy Sustainability, the ASME 2015 13th International Conference on Fuel Cell Science, Engineering and Technology, and the ASME 2015 Nuclear Forum
Country/Territory	United States
City	San Diego
Period	6/28/15 → 7/2/15

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Mechanical Engineering
Energy Engineering and Power Technology

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10.1115/POWER201549094

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Gunawan, A, Fette, NW & Phelan, P 2015, Thermogalvanic waste heat recovery system in automobiles. in American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Power Division (Publication) POWER. vol. 2015-January, American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), ASME 2015 Power Conference, POWER 2015, collocated with the ASME 2015 9th International Conference on Energy Sustainability, the ASME 2015 13th International Conference on Fuel Cell Science, Engineering and Technology, and the ASME 2015 Nuclear Forum, San Diego, United States, 6/28/15. https://doi.org/10.1115/POWER201549094

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title = "Thermogalvanic waste heat recovery system in automobiles",

abstract = "Recovering waste heat from automobiles remains an inviting subject for research. Solid-state thermoelectric generators (TEGs) have been widely investigated for this purpose, but their practical application remains challenging. An alternative to TEGs are thermogalvanic cells. Temperature difference between hot and cold electrodes creates a potential difference. Once connected to a load, electrical current and power are delivered, converting heat into electricity. In this work, we investigate the feasibility of incorporating such systems into automobiles. We carry out the experiments under real-world conditions. A climate-controlled wind tunnel is built to provide equivalent conditions to the ambient air stream under the car. The demonstrated system achieved a power density on the order of mW m-2. We compare the power generated to those of TEGs currently tested by GM, Honda, BMW and Ford. Further, a simple economic estimation is calculated to assess the $ per Watt cost of future practical thermogalvanic waste heat recovery system.",

author = "Andrey Gunawan and Fette, {Nicholas W.} and Patrick Phelan",

year = "2015",

doi = "10.1115/POWER201549094",

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publisher = "American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)",

note = "ASME 2015 Power Conference, POWER 2015, collocated with the ASME 2015 9th International Conference on Energy Sustainability, the ASME 2015 13th International Conference on Fuel Cell Science, Engineering and Technology, and the ASME 2015 Nuclear Forum ; Conference date: 28-06-2015 Through 02-07-2015",

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AB - Recovering waste heat from automobiles remains an inviting subject for research. Solid-state thermoelectric generators (TEGs) have been widely investigated for this purpose, but their practical application remains challenging. An alternative to TEGs are thermogalvanic cells. Temperature difference between hot and cold electrodes creates a potential difference. Once connected to a load, electrical current and power are delivered, converting heat into electricity. In this work, we investigate the feasibility of incorporating such systems into automobiles. We carry out the experiments under real-world conditions. A climate-controlled wind tunnel is built to provide equivalent conditions to the ambient air stream under the car. The demonstrated system achieved a power density on the order of mW m-2. We compare the power generated to those of TEGs currently tested by GM, Honda, BMW and Ford. Further, a simple economic estimation is calculated to assess the $ per Watt cost of future practical thermogalvanic waste heat recovery system.

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Thermogalvanic waste heat recovery system in automobiles

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