Abstract
An analytical model is presented that can account for both electrical and hot
and cold thermal contact resistances when calculating the efficiency of a
thermoelectric generator. The model is compared to a numerical model of a
thermoelectric leg for 16 different thermoelectric materials, as well as to the
analytical models of Ebling et al. (J Electron Mater 39:1376, 2010) and Min
and Rowe (J Power Sour 38:253, 1992). The model presented here is shown to
accurately calculate the efficiency for all systems and all contact resistances
considered, with an average difference in efficiency between the numerical
model and the analytical model of -0.07 ± 0.35pp. This makes the model more
accurate than previously published models. The maximum absolute difference
in efficiency between the analytical model and the numerical model is 1.14pp
for all materials and all contact resistances considered.
Original language | English |
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Journal | Journal of Electronic Materials |
Volume | 45 |
Issue number | 3 |
Pages (from-to) | 1301-1308 |
ISSN | 0361-5235 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2016 |
Keywords
- Thermoelectrics
- Efficiency
- Contact resistance
- Electrical resistance
- Thermal resistance