Development of an Automotive Exhaust Thermoelectric Generator
School Name
Center For Advanced Technical Studies
Grade Level
10th Grade
Presentation Topic
Engineering
Presentation Type
Non-Mentored
Abstract
How can the heat produced by the exhaust gases of an automobile be used to recharge a car battery? We hypothesized that a Waste Heat Recovery System could be placed onto the exterior of the exhaust. The first method that we found was to place the hot side of a Thermoelectric Generator or TEG onto the exhaust. The cold side has a small heat sink placed on it to allow for more thermal conductivity. For the first round of tests four TEGs were placed along the exhaust each about one foot apart on the long exhaust of the tabletop diesel engine we used for testing. The results of the testing showed that over four identical tests on average ever from the TEG that had the highest voltage output only made 0.3 Volts per minute. This shows that if we want to make enough electricity to recharge a car battery which needs 12 volts to charge. A way for us to improve the output is to add more TEGs on the exhaust. In the future we can also investigate the possibility of moving water through the heatsink to decrease the temperature on the cold side.
Recommended Citation
Murray, Zander, "Development of an Automotive Exhaust Thermoelectric Generator" (2020). South Carolina Junior Academy of Science. 88.
https://scholarexchange.furman.edu/scjas/2020/all/88
Location
John's Hall 105
Start Date
3-28-2020 11:15 AM
Presentation Format
Oral Only
Group Project
No
Development of an Automotive Exhaust Thermoelectric Generator
John's Hall 105
How can the heat produced by the exhaust gases of an automobile be used to recharge a car battery? We hypothesized that a Waste Heat Recovery System could be placed onto the exterior of the exhaust. The first method that we found was to place the hot side of a Thermoelectric Generator or TEG onto the exhaust. The cold side has a small heat sink placed on it to allow for more thermal conductivity. For the first round of tests four TEGs were placed along the exhaust each about one foot apart on the long exhaust of the tabletop diesel engine we used for testing. The results of the testing showed that over four identical tests on average ever from the TEG that had the highest voltage output only made 0.3 Volts per minute. This shows that if we want to make enough electricity to recharge a car battery which needs 12 volts to charge. A way for us to improve the output is to add more TEGs on the exhaust. In the future we can also investigate the possibility of moving water through the heatsink to decrease the temperature on the cold side.
