Power from heat: A thermoelectric generator that converts waste heat from a car’s exhaust system into electricity could improve fuel economy. Credit: General Motors
Power from heat: A thermoelectric generator that converts waste heat from a car’s exhaust system into electricity could improve fuel economy. Credit: General Motors
Thermoelectric Waste Heat Recovery Ping!.................
The crucial challenge is making good electrical and thermal contacts.
Seems to me like the cooling system would be the best place to do this. Either that, or embed high-temperature heat pipes right into the engine block, and put the thermocouples on the outside of the engine.
If this can get perfected and mass produced it could provide more energy per square inch than regular solar cells because solar cells only work with a small amount of em spectrum, where all you would need is a black panel to absorb all light and heat up with this device under it.
Who knew skutterudites are cheaper than tellurides?
Seems like this would work well with a turbo. You could remove the heat, use it as energy, and scavenge the now cool gasses to run the turbo which would allow you to use a smaller displacement engine to produce the same amount of power.
Yeah, let’s hang an extra 1000lbs of this crap on our vehicles instead of drilling here for our own oil.
This makes much more sense than windmills, solar panels, and ethanol.
I just hope there is little, it any, government funding. which will lead the program down a dead end path.
Well, THAT certainly sounds Sustainable and Green.
That sounds like a ski resort that serves bad food.
I can see the sticker on the back of the car now.
'CAUTION..Do not place mouth on exhaust pipe or inhale the fumes.
Especially children under 12 and pregnant women.