Effect of the air cooled forced convection finned heat sinks on the TEG net power: experimental and simulation results

Abstract

Thermoelectric generators (TEG) modules are devices that generate electrical power when there exists a temperature difference at its surfaces. The efficiency of TEGs depend on the ability to extract heat of its cold side. Some applications rely on air cooled forced convection finned heat sinks whose design parameters may greatly vary. Here we study the effects of the design parameters of finned heat sinks on the net output power. The net output power is equal to the power generated by the TEG minus the power absorbed by the fan that supplies air into the forced convection system. The analysis is carried out by means of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations with the multi-physics commercial software ANSYS. The model has been validated with experimental data. Results show that, for a constant heat sink exchange area, a better performance is achieved with fin thicknesses greater than 1 mm.