Using thermoelectric generators, recover waste heat energy to increase the efficiency of automotive internal combustion engines.

Abstract

More than 70% of the energy is obtained from the waste heat energy emitted into the atmosphere by a vehicle engine's fuel consumption. If a thermoelectric generator is utilized to convert the lost thermal energy into electricity, we can take use of waste heat energy in a car's exhaust system. A thermoelectric generator is a device that converts temperature differences to electricity via the Seebeck effect. A thermoelectric generator is a device that converts temperature differences into electrical energy via the Seebeck effect. A temperature difference on both sides is required for the thermoelectric generator to produce electrical energy, so the ability to generate electrical power by thermoelectric generation using the missing thermal energy from the vehicle's exhaust system and relatively cool surrounding air temperature has been experimentally evaluated at various air velocity and speeds. On the other hand, we examine the feasibility of installing thermoelectric generation on the engine's front radiator, as well as the differences between utilizing lost thermal energy in the exhaust system and the automobile radiator. The goal of this article is to look at whether a thermoelectric generator could convert waste heat from a vehicle's exhaust system and radiator into usable electrical energy. As a result, in this study, a laboratory equipment was developed to imitate a car's exhaust system and radiator. The surface temperature of the exhaust pipe and the radiator varies with changes in speed, vehicle load, and surrounding environmental variables. Air, on the other hand, will pass over the fins to cool the thermoelectric generator's other side. These factors will cause a temperature difference on both sides of the thermoelectric generator, which will directly affect the amount of electrical power the thermoelectric generator device can produce. In this paper, the temperature of the other side will rise when exposed to the heat flux that represents the exhaust surface temperature and radiator surface temperature at those operating conditions after the thermoelectric generator has undergone different operating conditions by changing the velocity of the air passing on one side to cool it down. We predict that in the best environmental conditions that produce the highest temperature difference, the output power for each thermoelectric generator device is 1.18 watts at 20℃ environmental conditions,  Using ANSYS FLUENT SOFTWARE, it was concluded that at a high-temperature difference of 45 and above, an increase in the temperature difference by 3℃ increases the electrical output energy from the thermoelectric generator devices by 0.2 watts, Thus, we can predict the production of electrical energy by the thermoelectric generator device in different environmental conditions.