Recent developments of thermoelectric power generation

One form of energy generation that is expected to be on the rise in the next several decades is thermoelectric power generation (TEPG) which converts heat directly to electricity. Compared with other methods, TEPG possesses the salient features of being compact, light-weighted, noiseless in operation, highly reliable, free of carbon dioxide emission and radioactive substances. Low current conversion efficiency and high cost, however, are some of the disadvantages. Use of TEPG is therefore justified to hightech applications associated with aerospace, military operation, tel-communication and navigation, instrumentation of unmanned vehicles monitored from remote locations. Moreover, TEPG does not contribute to the depletion of natural resource and pollution of the environment such as climate warming that has been a concern in recent times. This work is concerned with providing an overview of the state of the art of TEPG with emphases placed on assessing its current and potential application. Pointed out are the ways to fabricate high performance thermoelectric material, a hurdle to overcome for the enhancement of TEPG device efficiency.

[1]  Tomiyoshi Haruyama,et al.  Performance of Peltier elements as a cryogenic heat flux sensor at temperatures down to 60 K , 2001 .

[2]  Gao Min,et al.  Low cost stove-top thermoelectric generator for regions with unreliable electricity supply , 2003 .

[3]  D. Rowe.  CRC Handbook of Thermoelectrics , 1995 .

[4]  Uher,et al.  CsBi(4)Te(6): A high-performance thermoelectric material for low-temperature applications , 2000, Science.

[5]  H. J. Goldsmid,et al.  A review of the new thermoelectric materials , 2001, Proceedings ICT2001. 20 International Conference on Thermoelectrics (Cat. No.01TH8589).

[6]  W. Shin,et al.  Investigation of thermoelectric hydrogen sensor based on SiGe film , 2003 .

[7]  M. Schulze,et al.  Infrared thermopile sensors with high sensitivity and very low temperature coefficient , 1995 .

[8]  George S. Nolas,et al.  SKUTTERUDITES : A phonon-glass-electron crystal approach to advanced thermoelectric energy conversion applications , 1999 .

[9]  M. Schmidt.  Portable MEMS power sources , 2003, 2003 IEEE International Solid-State Circuits Conference, 2003. Digest of Technical Papers. ISSCC..

[10]  T. Hirai,et al.  Synthesis and thermoelectric properties of filled skutterudite compounds CeyFexCo4−xSb12 by solid state reaction , 2001 .

[11]  M. Muhammed,et al.  Synthesis and characterization of nano-engineered thermoelectric skutterudite via solution chemistry route , 1999 .

[12]  Mildred S. Dresselhaus,et al.  Effect of quantum-well structures on the thermoelectric figure of merit. , 1993, Physical review. B, Condensed matter.

[13]  A. L. Johnson,et al.  Potential of quasicrystals and quasicrystal approximants for new and improved thermoelectric materials , 1997, XVI ICT '97. Proceedings ICT'97. 16th International Conference on Thermoelectrics (Cat. No.97TH8291).

[14]  M. Kanatzidis,et al.  Cubic AgPbmSbTe2+m: Bulk Thermoelectric Materials with High Figure of Merit , 2004, Science.

[15]  Joseph Khedari,et al.  The Potential of Waste Heat Thermoelectric Power Generation From Diesel Cycle and Gas Turbine Cogeneration Plants , 2001 .

[16]  M. A. Ryan,et al.  Where there is heat, there is a way: Thermal to electric power conversion using thermoelectric microconverters , 2002 .

[17]  D. Singh,et al.  APPLICATION OF COAL ASH IN FLUIDIZED THERMAL BEDS , 2002 .

[18]  Sun Jia-lin.  Recent Development of Thermoelectric Materials , 2003 .

[19]  S. Kanzaki,et al.  Thermoelectric CO Gas Sensor Using Thin-Film Catalyst of Au and Co3 O 4 , 2004 .

[20]  R. Venkatasubramanian,et al.  Thin-film thermoelectric devices with high room-temperature figures of merit , 2001, Nature.

[21]  M. Kishi,et al.  Micro thermoelectric modules and their application to wristwatches as an energy source , 1999, Eighteenth International Conference on Thermoelectrics. Proceedings, ICT'99 (Cat. No.99TH8407).

[22]  Terry M. Tritt,et al.  Holey and Unholey Semiconductors , 1999, Science.

[23]  David Michael Rowe,et al.  Novel high performance small-scale thermoelectric power generation employing regenerative combustion systems , 2002 .

[24]  T. Kyono,et al.  Conversion of Unused Heat Energy to Electricity by Means of Thermoelectric Generation in Condenser , 2002, IEEE Power Engineering Review.

[25]  S. Poon,et al.  Effect of substitutional doping on the thermal conductivity of Ti-based Half-Heusler compounds , 2000 .

[26]  Kazuhiko Shinohara,et al.  Application of Thermoelectric Generator for Automobile , 1999 .

[27]  Kent S. Wood,et al.  X-ray/UV single photon detectors with isotropic Seebeck sensors , 2000 .

[28]  David Michael Rowe,et al.  Thermoelectrics, an environmentally-friendly source of electrical power , 1999 .

[29]  Li Shi,et al.  Profiling the Thermoelectric Power of Semiconductor Junctions with Nanometer Resolution , 2004, Science.

[30]  M. P. Walsh,et al.  Quantum Dot Superlattice Thermoelectric Materials and Devices , 2002, Science.

[31]  F. Disalvo,et al.  Thermoelectric cooling and power generation , 1999, Science.

[32]  John C. Bass,et al.  Quantum well thermoelectric devices and applications , 2003, Proceedings ICT'03. 22nd International Conference on Thermoelectrics (IEEE Cat. No.03TH8726).

[33]  The Study of the Origin of the Anomalously Large Thermoelectric Power of Si/Ge Superlattice Thin Film , 2000 .

[34]  Gary H. Rinehart,et al.  Design characteristics and fabrication of radioisotope heat sources for space missions , 2001 .

[35]  M. Dresselhaus,et al.  Recent developments in thermoelectric materials , 2003 .

[36]  M. Shikano,et al.  Cation substituted (Ca2CoO3)xCoO2 films and their thermoelectric properties , 2002 .