Thermoelectric devices have the ability to enable/accelerate a wide variety of applications. Major applications of thermoelectric devices include: Cooling of electronics (integrated circuits, detectors/focal plane arrays, microprocessors, disk drives, solid state lasers) Power generation from waste heat or engine exhaust (thermoelectric generator mode) Power generation in remote areas using temporal fluctuations with daily cycles Satellite power recovery Cooling of heavy equipment and machining processes Distributed cooling systems for confined spaces (automobiles, military vehicles, submarines) Man portable or embedded cooling systems for soldier battle dress uniforms (BDUs) or other wearable devices that can extract energy from body heat Precision temperature control Lightweight thermoelectric generators that have the ability to conform to custom geometries offer many advantages in waste heat recovery over traditional rigid plate TEG devices. The proposed device will possess inherent radiation hardness as well as have low stowed weight making it ideal for thermoelectric-driven waste heat energy scavenging on interplantary and other space missions.
More »