Volume 68

Geometric optimization of a thermoelectric module considering variable thermal electric properties and air gap dissipation Yuncheng Lan,Yichen Wang,Junhui Lu,Suilin Wang,Yifeng Qin,Ziyu Qin

Abstract

Geometry of thermoelectric module (TEM) plays an essential role in designing TEM to achieve optimal efficiency. However, the effect of geometric parameters for TEM on output characteristics have not been thoroughly investigated when the prediction model considers variable thermoelectric properties, Thomson heat, air gap dissipation, and thermal contact resistance effects. Two important findings are as follow:(1)As the ratio of thermoelectric leg area to ceramic sheet area (φ=Apn/Acer) increases, the output efficiency shows parabolically increases rather than a non-linear increase when model considers air gap dissipation effect. The φ is strongly correlated with the height of the thermoelectric leg and increases with the height of the thermoelectric leg. (2) The maximum output power and efficiency occur at Ap/An < 1 when the Seebeck coefficient or conductivity of the n-type thermoelectric leg is much larger than those of the p-type leg. Meanwhile, when the thermal conductivity of the n-type thermoelectric leg is much larger than that of the p-type, the optimal Ap/An exceeds 1. The novel model and geometric analysis provide guidelines to improve and promote the performance of TEM.

Keywords Thermoelectric module,Air gap dissipation,variable thermoelectric properties,Geometric optimization