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Energy Harvesting Using Thermocouple and Compressed Air

In this paper, we describe the possibility of using the energy of a compressed air flow, where cryogenic temperatures are achieved within the flow behind the nozzle, when reaching a critical flow in order to maximize the energy gained. Compared to the energy of compressed air, the energy obtained th...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Bayer, Robert, Maxa, Jiří, Šabacká, Pavla
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8472876/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34577238
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s21186031
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author Bayer, Robert
Maxa, Jiří
Šabacká, Pavla
author_facet Bayer, Robert
Maxa, Jiří
Šabacká, Pavla
author_sort Bayer, Robert
collection PubMed
description In this paper, we describe the possibility of using the energy of a compressed air flow, where cryogenic temperatures are achieved within the flow behind the nozzle, when reaching a critical flow in order to maximize the energy gained. Compared to the energy of compressed air, the energy obtained thermoelectrically is negligible, but not zero. We are therefore primarily aiming to maximize the use of available energy sources. Behind the aperture separating regions with a pressure difference of several atmospheres, a supersonic flow with a large temperature drop develops. Based on the Seebeck effect, a thermocouple is placed in these low temperatures to create a thermoelectric voltage. This paper contains a mathematical-physical analysis for proper nozzle design, controlled gas expansion and ideal placement of a thermocouple within the flow for best utilization of the low temperature before a shockwave formation. If the gas flow passes through a perpendicular shockwave, the velocity drops sharply and the gas pressure rises, thereby increasing the temperature. In contrast, with a conical shockwave, such dramatic changes do not occur and the cooling effect is not impaired. This article also contains analyses for proper forming of the head shape of the thermocouple to avoid the formation of a detached shockwave, which causes temperature stagnation resulting in lower thermocouple cooling efficiency.
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spelling pubmed-84728762021-09-28 Energy Harvesting Using Thermocouple and Compressed Air Bayer, Robert Maxa, Jiří Šabacká, Pavla Sensors (Basel) Communication In this paper, we describe the possibility of using the energy of a compressed air flow, where cryogenic temperatures are achieved within the flow behind the nozzle, when reaching a critical flow in order to maximize the energy gained. Compared to the energy of compressed air, the energy obtained thermoelectrically is negligible, but not zero. We are therefore primarily aiming to maximize the use of available energy sources. Behind the aperture separating regions with a pressure difference of several atmospheres, a supersonic flow with a large temperature drop develops. Based on the Seebeck effect, a thermocouple is placed in these low temperatures to create a thermoelectric voltage. This paper contains a mathematical-physical analysis for proper nozzle design, controlled gas expansion and ideal placement of a thermocouple within the flow for best utilization of the low temperature before a shockwave formation. If the gas flow passes through a perpendicular shockwave, the velocity drops sharply and the gas pressure rises, thereby increasing the temperature. In contrast, with a conical shockwave, such dramatic changes do not occur and the cooling effect is not impaired. This article also contains analyses for proper forming of the head shape of the thermocouple to avoid the formation of a detached shockwave, which causes temperature stagnation resulting in lower thermocouple cooling efficiency. MDPI 2021-09-09 /pmc/articles/PMC8472876/ /pubmed/34577238 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s21186031 Text en © 2021 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Communication
Bayer, Robert
Maxa, Jiří
Šabacká, Pavla
Energy Harvesting Using Thermocouple and Compressed Air
title Energy Harvesting Using Thermocouple and Compressed Air
title_full Energy Harvesting Using Thermocouple and Compressed Air
title_fullStr Energy Harvesting Using Thermocouple and Compressed Air
title_full_unstemmed Energy Harvesting Using Thermocouple and Compressed Air
title_short Energy Harvesting Using Thermocouple and Compressed Air
title_sort energy harvesting using thermocouple and compressed air
topic Communication
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8472876/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34577238
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s21186031
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