Peltier element aka thermoelectric module

Single element thermoelectric module (TEM) is a thermocouple consisting of two dissimilar elements with p- and n-type conductivity. The elements are connected to each other using a copper connection plate. Semiconductors based on bismuth, tellurium, antimony and selenium are traditionally used as element materials.

Connect the water to the cooler to one side Peltier element, and put the other one on the burner. We connect a 10W 6 volt light bulb to the output of the element. The result is that our generator is working!

Such a thermoelectric generator is well remembered by those who remember Soviet state and collective farms. They say that during the war the Germans could not understand how the partisans could conduct radio broadcasts for a long time from a besieged forest.

Yes, as they say - if our scientists were paid money, they would have invented the iPhone back in `85! :-)

Thermoelectric refrigerator

Thermoelectric refrigerator (option 2)

Thermoelectric refrigerator (option 3)

Car cooler for canned drinks

Drinking water cooler

Thermoelectric air conditioner for KAMAZ cab

Water is poured into such a “ladle”, placed on fire and, please, recharge your mobile phone. The whole secret is in the bottom, Peltier is “buried” there

Let's take a closer look at this design.

Currently, there is growing interest in the use of thermoelectric generator modules in household devices. First of all, this concerns the possibility of powering low-power consumers of electricity - radios, cell and satellite phones, laptop computers, automation devices, etc. from existing heat sources. A thermoelectric generator, which has no rotating, rubbing or any other wearing parts, allows you to directly obtain electricity from any heat source: exhaust gases of internal combustion engines, hot water from geothermal sources, “waste” heat from thermal power plants, etc. Guided by the experience gained in the creation of industrial thermoelectric generators (TEGs) of various powers - from several Watts to several kiloWatts, IPF CRYOTHERM began mass production of household TEGs with a nominal power of 8 W.Structurally, the generator is made in the form of an aluminum bucket with an internal volume of about 1 liter, in the bottom of which generator modules produced by IPF Kryotherm are installed.

 

The generator consists of such small thermoelectric capacitors.

Thanks to the use of the latest materials, thermoelectric generators (TEGs) are already capable of generating electricity with a power of up to 1000 W.

The thermal generator will especially please fans of dynamic driving: after all, the higher the engine speed, the more electricity is generated, which in the future can be used in hybrid power plants, for example, for even better acceleration dynamics.

Almost two-thirds of the fuel energy in modern internal combustion engines “flies” into the atmosphere along with heat. Therefore, BMW engineers, together with specialists from the American aerospace agency NASA, are actively working on technologies for converting the thermal energy of exhaust gases into electrical energy. Such installations have another positive effect: additional heating of a cold engine. For now, TEG “envelops” a section of the exhaust pipe, but in the future it is planned to integrate this system into the catalyst, thereby using its thermal regime. For a larger scale implementation of this technology in the car, the underbody will have to be modernized, expanding the central tunnel in some places. It is expected that such a system will very soon be able to provide 5 percent fuel savings, increasing the efficiency of the internal combustion engine.