Thermal management of thermoelectric generators for waste energy recovery

Abstract

Energy savings motivated by economic and environmental reasons have brought attention to waste heat recovery technologies. Thermoelectric generators, previously employed as electric power generators in harsh conditions such as the found in space missions and remote ground locations, have arisen as an option to recover waste energy. Thermoelectric generators convert heat into electric power, but the low conversion efficiency of thermoelectric materials involves a challenge in the integration of thermoelectric generators to heat sources, as more energy losses than savings can be caused. As a result, the design process must be tailored to the system from which energy is to be recovered. This work fills the gap in previous reviewed literature, providing considerations focused on thermal management of heat sources for the design of thermoelectric generators and methods to evaluate specific energy sources and prototypes are presented. In addition, several applications were reviewed and main opportunities, advantages and drawbacks in different sectors are presented.