Design of internal fin structure of heat exchange to improve the efficiency of a thermoelectric power generation system

초록

A thermoelectric harvesting system is a technology that converts heat (thermal energy) directly into electrical energy using thermoelectric materials. This process is based on the Seebeck effect, where a temperature difference across a thermoelectric material generates a voltage, leading to the production of electrical power. The optimization of thermoelectric power system is to find a balance between maximizing the temperature difference between the hot and cold parts and ensuring that heat exchange occurs well in the heat exchanger. Therefore, the design should be aimed at achieving a balance between maximizing the temperature difference and ensuring that sufficient heat is transferred through the heat exchanger. There are several ways to increase heat exchanger efficiency. These include increasing the heat transfer area, using materials with higher thermal conductivity, making the fluid flow turbulently or distributing heat well. In this research, we aimed to achieve an efficient fin design, especially to distribute the heat in the z-axis direction. To confirm that the power generation is well generated, COMSOL Multiphysics was used to observe the average surface temperature of thermoelectric elements between heat exchangers, and it was confirmed that the temperature increases When heat is well dispersed along the z-axis. The heat exchanger was simulated with 80 °C water flowing in from the hot plate and 0 °C water flowing in from the cold plate under counter-flow conditions. We Changed the shape and arrangement of the fins in various ways, Starting with the rectangles. Different thermal efficiencies were shown depending on the structure and arrangement of the fins inside the heat exchanger, which resulted in differences in the efficiency of the thermoelectric power generation system. Therefore, thermoelectric power generation efficiency can be improved through structural features inside the heat exchanger.