International Journal of Energy Research, Vol.42, No.15, 4853-4865, 2018
Internal combustion engine waste heat recovery by a thermoelectric generator inserted at combustion chamber walls
In this study, a thermoelectric module has been inserted at the wall of the combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine (ICE) to improve its performance by taking the advantage of the high-temperature difference between ICE combustion gases and coolant fluid. A mathematical analysis under steady-state conditions has been introduced to investigate the effects of the proposed system. The generated electrical power has been studied versus many parameters such as revolution per minute (RPM), compression ratio of the engine, coolant fluid type, and coolant fluid temperature. The proposed position in this study has many features over the other positions, as the promising innovative position can achieve great results. A typical spark ignition (SI) engine has been used with a suitable thermoelectric generation (TEG) inserted at the wall of the engine's combustion chamber. As a result, 600 W of electrical energy was produced by the proposed system and the efficiency was increased by 2.75% at 4000 RPM which is interestingly better than other TEGs inserted on the exhaust pipe or the radiator of the automobile.
Keywords:automotive recovery applications;waste heat;combustion chamber;internal combustion engines;power generation;thermoelectric generator;waste heat