Weighted analysis and simplified calculation method of automotive exhaust thermoelectric generator performance

Abstract

This paper focuses on evaluating the performance of automotive exhaust thermoelectric generators (AETEGs) under actual vehicle driving conditions. The exhaust gas temperature and mass flow rate under driving conditions are in a transient state, which directly affects the performance of the AETEG and therefore cannot be ignored. To reflect this, we built a numerical model of the AETEG and developed a weighted analysis method based on the exhaust conditions in standard test cycles to obtain the output performance and optimal thermoelectric module area of the AETEG. The results show that, compared with the results without using the weighted analysis, the maximum power output and the optimal module area increased by 5.2 % and 56.4 %, respectively, after using this method. In addition, for engineering applications, this paper presents a simplified calculation method for the performance parameters of an AETEG. Compared with the numerical calculation method, the simplified calculation method, whose calculation accuracy meets the requirements of general engineering applications, is more convenient and efficient, and has certain guiding significance for the practical application of AETEGs.