Study of TEG-Heatsink Pairs for Indoor Thermal Energy Harvesting Applications
Year: 2025
Type: conference-paper
Abstract: The rise of smart technologies and Internet of Things has heightened the need for reliable, sustainable power sources for autonomous sensor nodes. Energy harvesting from the thermal domain, using Thermoelectric Generators (TEGs), offers a viable solution, as TEGs can directly convert temperature gradients into electrical energy. However, TEG performance strongly relies on thermal management, often achieved through heatsinks. This study highlights the importance of optimizing the TEG-heatsink pairing for indoor thermal energy harvesting by investigating two commercial TEGs (TEG #1 and TEG #2) paired with three heatsinks of different dimensions (HS #1, HS #2, HS #3) under temperature gradients (ΔT) from 5 °C to 40 °C. Results show that TEG #1 and TEG #2, when paired with the largest heatsink (HS #3), provided the highest maximum power. Specifically, TEG #1 generated 58.5 mW at ΔT = 40 °C, outperforming TEG #2 that reached 37.6 mW under the same condition. However, these values of power were an order of magnitude lower when a small heatsink (with the same area as the TEGs) was employed. In conclusion, optimizing the TEG-heatsink pairing is crucial for indoor thermal energy harvesting. Although large heatsinks offer a better performance, this has to be well balanced with potential spatial constraints imposed by the application.
Authors: Mohamad Ridwan, Manel Gasulla, Ferran Reverter
Institution: Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya
Language: English
Subfield: Materials Chemistry
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4413145136