Experimental Study of the Thermoelectric Conversion Characteristics of a Device Combining a TPCT and TGs

In this paper, the thermoelectric conversion characteristics of a device combining a TPCT and TGs are studied. The experimental devices consist of four parts: TPCT heat transfer module, cooling and heat dissipation module, thermoelectric power generation module, and data collection module. The effects of different heating powers (100 W, 200 W, 400 W, and 600 W) and different liquid filling rates of the TPCT (10%, 25%, 35%, and 45%) on the heat transfer performance and the power generation performance of the device are studied. The research indicates that the impact of the liquid filling rate on heat transfer and power generation performance is less significant than that of heating power. As the heating power increases, both the heat transfer and power generation performance of the device will improve and is finally in a relatively stable state. The thermal resistance at the liquid filling rate of 10% is the smallest, roughly around 0.11 °C/W. At a heating power of 200 W, the TPCT at the liquid filling rate of 10% has the largest heat transfer efficiency, which is 83.36%. The maximum values of power generation efficiency and net power generation efficiency are 2.27% and 3.10%, respectively.