RUNNING HEAD: THERMOELECTRIC ENERGY 1

Research Plan

Hahnbee Lee

October 26, 2017

Thermoelectric Energy
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Rationale

The disadvantage of burning fossil fuels for energy along with the gradual increase in

dependence on these nonrenewable resources are growing problems that are become more and

more prevalent in our world and its environment. Not only are fossil fuels bad for the

environment, but third world countries also do not have access to the energy that they desire to

have to power anything. Additionally, what makes the problem worse is that in first world

countries like America, we produce 100 quads of primary energy and 60 quads of waste energy

annually which means that 60% of our energy used is wasted.

Most of the energy waste is derived from transportation, power generation, industrial and

solid waste. The main ones being power generation and transportation waste. Power plants

operate at 33 percent fuel efficiency, a lot of waste is found lost in heat through cooling towers,

rivers and streams resulting in 26.4 quads of energy being lost in smoke. The US transportation

sector uses 28.6 quads of fuel per year and about 30 percent of this energy (20 quads) is wasted

through exhaust pipes. (Casten)

In conclusion, energy is a huge issue that not only hurts the environment, but is readily

being wasted by countries like America. Which is why renewable green solutions to these issues

need to start up on their feet up and running. What my experiment proposes is a more efficient

way to use heat gradients and thermoelectronics to save the wasted energy through heat

exhaust. Whether its application is through the heat lost through cars or the heat or air

conditioning lost in homes, this year my projects goal is to save heat energy and use the

temperature gradient created by the lost heat to a more efficient use and create a voltage and

take use that power to power other things more efficiently.

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Question

Can I use the application of heat gradients to thermoelectrics to create electricity and then apply

it to a novel application?

Hypothesis

Null Hypothesis

I will not be able to increase efficiency in energy consumption through the application of

thermoelectronics.

Alternative Hypothesis

Thermoelectronics will increase the efficiency by making use of heat lost.

Engineering Goals

To increase the efficiency in a Peltier tile is one of my engineering goals. Additionally, I

want to be able to create a system that will successfully connect to another device to allow it to

be charged.

Expected Outcomes

An increase in efficiency of a typical thermoelectric generator or a significant decrease in

the use of energy because the device will power whatever needs to be powered, naturally without

the use of fossil fuels.

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Methods

There are many thermoelectronic devices that can be applied to my project. However,

thermoelectronics have an efficiency rate of about 10%, so if I can possibly create a device that

is more efficient that in itself will be beneficial to the issue. The varying devices consist of a heat

pump, Carnot engine, and the application of the Peltier effect and the Seebeck effect. I plan on

either creating or taking apart some of these devices to fully understand how they work and then

manipulating them by using an application of a different material to increase efficiency.

I will either all-in-all create a new device that is more efficient or I will use an already

made device and apply it to a novel application. Some of the applications I have in mind are the

application to a gas engine car, the heat gradient caused by windows, heat emitted by electronic

devices, or the ocean temperature difference. For the gas engine I will find out a way to use the

energy lost from exhaust pipes and apply it back to the car to power components of the car that

need to be powered by electricity. For the window, I plan on creating a thin film that could

possibly conduct electricity, but not heat. As for electronic devices, a Peltier tile can easily be

attached to make use of the heat emitted from the battery. As for the oceanic temperature

differences, more research needs to be done on how a device can withstand the pressure and be

waterproof.

In conclusion, I will be creating a novel themroelectronic device that will be more

efficient and/or be applied to a novel application.

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Risk and Safety

The main risk of this project is working with electronics and possibly getting electrocuted

by touching a part of the electronics that shouldnt be touched. The other risk is getting burnt

when in the process of creating a temperature gradient.

In order to be precautious of being either burnt or electrocuted I will wear gloves when

needed and remind myself to think about what Im doing prior to touching anything.
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Data Analysis

For this project, I will have to learn what I need to measure to measure efficiency. I will

have to measure the amount of heat being put into the device and how much voltage I will be

creating from that. The best way to measure this efficiency is by measuring the amount of energy

(J) being put in and how much energy we will be getting out.

More research will further be done to measure energy lost from heat and gained in the

form of electricity.
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References

Casten, S. (2009, September 12). How much energy does the U.S. waste? Retrieved October 17,

2017, from http://grist.org/article/2009-09-11-how-much-energy-does-the-us-waste/

Garnero, E.J., Mcnamara, A.K., & Shim. S. (2016). Continent-sized anomalous zones with low

seismic velocity at the base of Earths mantle. Nature Geoscience, 9(7), 481-489.

Doi:10.1038/ngeo2733

Iafolla, V., Nozzoli, S., & Fiorenza, E. (2003). One axis gravity gradiometer for the

measurement of Newtons gravitational constant G. Physics Letters A, 318(3), 223-233.

doi:10.1016/j.physleta.2003.07.014

Liu, H., & Pike, W. T. (2016). A micromachined angular-acceleration sensor for geophysical

applications. Applied Physics Letters,109(17), 173506. doi:10.1063/1.4966547

Yang, S. (2017, January 26). For This Metal, Electricity Flows, But Not the Heat | Berkeley Lab.

Retrieved October 26, 2017, from http://newscenter.lbl.gov/2017/01/26/electricity-not-

heat-flows-in-vanadium-dioxide/