Peridynamic Formulation for Coupled Thermoelectric Phenomena

Modeling of heat and electrical current flow simultaneously in thermoelectric convertor using classical theories do not consider the influence of defects in the material. This is because traditional methods are developed based on partial differential equations (PDEs) and lead to infinite fluxes at the discontinuities. The usual way of solving such PDEs is by using numerical technique, like Finite Element Method (FEM). Although FEM is robust and versatile, it is not suitable to model evolving discontinuities. To avoid such shortcomings, we propose the concept of peridynamic theory to derive the balance of energy and charge equations in the coupled thermoelectric phenomena. Therefore, this paper presents the transport of heat and charge in thermoelectric material in the framework of peridynamic (PD) theory. To illustrate the reliability of the PD formulation, numerical examples are presented and results are compared with those from literature, analytical solutions, or finite element solutions.

Bond Based Peridynamic Formulation for Thermoelectric Materials

Modeling of heat and electrical current flow simultaneously in thermoelectric convertor using classical theories do not consider the influence of defects in the material. This is because traditional methods are developed based on partial differential equations (PDEs) and lead to infinite fluxes and stress fields at the crack tips. The usual way of solving such PDEs is by using numerical technique, like Finite Element Method (FEM). Although FEM is robust and versatile, it is not suitable to model evolving discontinuities since discontinuous fields are mathematically singular at the crack tip and required an external criterion for the prediction of crack growth. In this paper, we follow the concept of peridynamic (PD) theory to overcome the shortcomings above. Therefore, the main aim of this paper is to develop the peridynamic equations for the generalized Fourier’s and Ohm’s laws. Furthermore, we derived the peridynamic equations for the conservation of energy and charge for the coupled thermoelectric phenomena.

The Performance of a Segmented Thermoelectric Convertor Using Yb-Based Filled Skutterudites and Bi2Te3-Based Materials

ABSTRACTThis paper reports an overview of the current state in our research program started in 1995 in collaboration with industries. This program has been aimed at making sure of the feasibility of a thermoelectric convertor for waste heat recovery of gasoline engine vehicle. Major results obtained include: (1) updated ZT-values for Pd,Pt-doped CoSb3 and partially Yb-filled skutterudite antimonides YbyM4Sb12 (M=Co, Fe, Ni; 0<y<1), (2) the performance of thermoelectric convertor using a segmented module of the skutterudites and Bi2Te3-based alloys, (3) a preliminary test of a thermoelectric stack which is the united device of thermoelectric modules and heat exchanger, when properly installed in a 2000cc class automobile.