Solar TE Converter Applications [chapter]

Anke Weidenkaff, Matthias Trottmann, Petr Tomeš, Clemens Suter, Aldo Steinfeld, Angelika Veziridis
2013 Springer Series in Materials Science  
Thermoelectricity does not only serve to profitably recover waste heat from many technical processes but also to exploit renewable energy resources for power generation. Conversion of concentrated solar radiation for decentralized electricity supply is a very promising application field for thermoelectric (TE) devices. However, experimental and theoretical studies with high-temperature resistant thermoelectric oxide modules (TOMs) reveal that 60 % of the incident solar radiation is lost due to
more » ... eradiation and only 20 % is available for electricity conversion. Calculations with a heat transfer model show that this loss can be substantially reduced from 60 % to only 4 % by using a solar cavity receiver instead of directly irradiated TE modules. The fraction of actually usable solar power can thereby be increased from 20 to 70 %. Despite the improved exploitation of solar radiation, solar-to-electricity A. Weidenkaff (B) · M. Trottmann · A. Veziridis Empa.
doi:10.1007/978-3-642-37537-8_16 fatcat:uv24lb77ebg3hnlbgrdua4zgca