Track: Energy

Abstract

Varying thermoelectric leg geometry and utilizing multiple thermoelectric modules (cascading) can greatly affect the performance of solar thermoelectric generators (STEGs), which utilize concentrated solar radiation in generating electricity. Hence, this conference paper presents a three-dimensional analysis of a two-stage variable leg solar thermoelectric generator (STEG) using ANSYS 2020 R2 software. The first-stage STEG utilizes the conventional rectangular leg geometry while the second-stage STEG comprises of the X-leg variable geometry. The hybrid two-stage STEG is subjected to varying concentrated solar radiation, and the performance parameters of the first-stage STEG, second-stage STEG and two-stage STEG are evaluated simultaneously. Results indicate that under the same operating conditions, the second-stage STEG generates a higher temperature gradient, power output density and efficiency compared to the first-stage STEG. Results further reveal the inefficiency of the conventional rectangular leg in handling thermal energy in STEG systems. Finally, results indicate that the use of variable leg geometry in the second-stage STEG greatly improves the overall performance of the hybrid-two stage system. The results obtained in this paper could provide insightful information in the design of cascaded solar thermoelectric generators operating under varying solar radiation.