WASTE HEAT RECOVERY FROM THE EXaAUST OF LOW-POWER DIESEL ENGINE
USING THERMOELECTRIC GENETATORS
Jihad G. Haidar
Jamil I. Ghojel
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Monash University
900 Dandenong Road, Caulfield East, Vic 3 145, Australia
E-mail: Jihad.Haidar0,enn.monash.edu.auor Jamil.Ghoiel@,enn.monash.edu.au
ABSTRACT
To meet the increasing world demand for energy, the rate
of depletion of non-renewable energy sources must be reduced
while developing alternative renewable sources. This can be
acheved by increasing the overall thermal efficiency of
conventional power plants. One way to do this is by waste
heat recovery. Most of the techniques currently available
recover waste heat in the form of thermal energy which is then
converted to electricity in a conventional steam power plant.
Another approach which has received little attention so far is
direct conversion of thermal waste energy into electricity.
Thermoelectrics is the science dealing with both low-
temperature and high-temperature thermal to electrical energy
conversion systems.
The paper will describe a pilot program to investigate the
applicability of thermoelectric generators to the recovery of
medium-temperature waste heat from a low-power stationary
diesel engine. Commercial thermoelectric modules using
bismuth telluride based alloys and consisting of 98 couples
were used. The modules require a heat source capable of
supplying a heat flux of about 8 W/cm2. With a temperature
difference of 200°C, each module converts 5% of the thermal
energy that passes through it into electricity generating 14 W
of electrical power. Heat transfer modelling was used to locate
the optimum mounting position of the waste heat recovery
system (WHRS) on the exhaust pipe. A compact device was
then designed incorporating six modules with the exhaust pipe
acting as the heat source. The required minimum temperature
on the cold side of the modules was provided by using water-
cooled heat sinks. Tests have shown that the performance
specified by the manufacturer can be reproduced.
One promising application for the tested WHRD is as a source
of electrical power in motor vehicles inliu of or in addition to
the alternator. A detailed analysis of this application will also
be presented.
Keywords: waste heat, recovery, thermoelectric, generator,
heat transfer, engines, generator
0-7803-5908-9/00/$10.00 02001 IEEE 413
INTRODUCTION
Heat engines are predominantly designed to produce useful
work only. Waste energy in the form of heat is normally a by-
product resulting from the irreversibility of the processes
involved in the conversion of primary energy to mechanical
and/or electrical energy. Recovery of this energy can be
beneficial in reducing power costs, reducing atmospheric
pollution and green house gases and reducing the depletion
rate of non-renewable energy resources. Waste energy can be
recovered to do more useful work and/or generate process heat
for domestic or industrial applications. Waste energy can also
be used to produce heat to improve the efficiency of a power
plant (combustion air preheating in steam generators and gas
turbines), generate steam in a waste-heat boiler as a process
heat or to drive a steam turbine to generate more electrical
power or to heat water for district central heating. Most
technologies currently in use convert the waste energy to an
end use indirectly by means of capital intensive intermediate
equipment such as heat exchangers and waste heat recovery
boilers. Little utilisation has been made to date of direct
conversion, for example, of low- and medium-grade heat into
electrical energy. Theoretically the advantages of such a
conversion are very attractive, particularly when converting
low-grade heat energy into electricity by means of
thermoelectric generators. These generators have no moving
parts and can run unattended for thousands of hours. For
example, the Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977 was
powered by 159 W Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator
(RTG) heated by radioactive isotopes as a power source.
Mission controllers report that all 1200 generators on board
were still functioning normally after 250 million hours of
operation and it is expected that scientific data will be
received from the spacecraft well into the 21 century [ 11.
THERMOELECTRIC GENERATOR (TG)
Thermoelectric generators are based on three
thermoelectric effects: the Seebeck effect, Peltier effect, and
Thomson effect. The Seebeck effect states that an electrical
potential is generated in an open circuit formed by two
dissimilar conductors when their junctions are maintained at
different temperatures. The Peltier effect states that heat can
be absorbed or liberated at the junction of two dissimilar
conductors when a current is passed.
20th International Conference on Thermoelectrics (2001)
The Thomson effect states that heat can be liberated or
absorbed in a single homogeneous conductor when an electric
current flows in the presence of temperature gradient. These
three effects can be represented mathematically as follows:
dE = ah-,dT
dQ = nh-,dl
1 temperature dBerence is maintained across the module,
where
a h + - Seebeck coefficient
?rh+- Peltier coefficient
p - Thomson coefficient
x - conductor length
I - electric current
E - electrical potential.
Subscripts h and c indicate the hot and cold junctions.
Good thermoelectric materials should possess large Seebeck
coefficient (a) to maximise electrical potential, low thermal
conductivity (k) to retain heat at the junction, and low
electrical resistance (high electrical conductivity fi to
minimise Ohmic losses (Joule heating). The parameter used to
evaluate a thermoelectric material is the figure-of-merit 2
defined as dr/k.
A thermoelectric converter consists of a number of alternate n-
and p-type semiconductor elements connected electrically in
series with metal connectors and sandwiched between two
ceramic plates forming a module (Fig. 1). The ceramic plates
are electrically insulating but thermally conductive. When a
electrical power will be delivered to an external load and the
device operates in the Seebeck mode as a generator.
Generators can be used as low-grade heat converters (50-
150"C),medium-grade heat converters (200-350"C), and high-
grade heat converters (up to 1000°C). Compared with
thermochemical devices, thermoelectric generators have the
advantage of simplicity, ruggedness, absence of moving parts
and working fluid, silent operation, and environmental
friendliness.
WASTE ENERGY IN INTERNAL COMBUSTION
ENGINES
Energy balance for spark ignition (SI) and compression
ignition (CI) automotive engines is shown in Table 1 adapted
from ref. [4].
Table 1. Energy balance for petrol & diesel engines.

A thermoelectric circuit approximates a reversible heat engine

and thermodynamic laws can be applied to analyse the
thermoelectric effects yielding the relationship between the The miscellaneous component include losses due to
Seebeck and Thomson coefficients and an expression for the incomplete combustion, heat rejected to the lubricating oil and
power W across the external load heat losses by convection and radiation from the engines
external surfaces. As Table 1 shows, substantial amount of
da 1 energy is lost through the exhaust gases in the form of low-
-dT= - (TA - A)
and medium-grade waste heat. This energy can be partially
ma*(Th -T,)2 recovered using thermoelectric generators.
W =
r(m + 1)2

The thermal efficiency can be written as given by ref. [2]

m

Or as given by ref. [31

I Q2
I
Laad
In these equations m is the ratio of the load resistance (I?) to
the internal resistance (r), a is the average Seebeck coefficient Figure 1. Schematic diagram of a thermoelectric generator
within the temperature range Th -Tc and TM is equal to module.
( T h f TJ2.

414 20th International Conference on Thermoelectrics (2001)

The current study was undertaken to investigate the
applicability of thermoelectric generators to exhaust-gas
waste-heat recovery in internal combustion engines. A
stationary diesel engine capable of operating within relatively
wide range of speeds and loads was selected as the high-
temperature heat source for the TG. The engine is a Ruston 3-
cylinder, air-cooled, direct injection, stationary diesel engine
having the specifications shown in Table 2.
these conductors electrically, an insulating material must be
placed between the module and the heat source or between the
module and the heat sink if the heat source and heat sink are
electrically conductive. Aluminium hard anodised coatings
were used on the heat sink side for this purpose.

Table 2. Ruston diesel engine specifications.

1 Engine
I
1I Ruston3YDA
BorexStroke I 111 mmx 127mm
Displacement 3696 cm'

When the engine is operated at 88% of rated power, fuel

consumption is 7 kg/hr, the air-fuel ratio is 22.6 and the
maximum temperature of the exhaust gases in the manifold is
about 500°C.

WASTE HEAT RECOVERY SYSTEM (WEIRS) DESIGN

Thermoelectric generator modules HZ-14 manufactured by

HI-Z Technology, Inc. (USA) were selected for the
application. The HZ-14 is a thermoelectric module which uses
bismuth telluride based alloys and consists of 98 couples. The
module requires a heat flux of about 8 W/cm2. With
temperature difference of 200°C (Design hot-side temperature
330"C), the module converts 5% of the thermal energy that
passes through it into electrical energy generating 14 W of
electrical power [5]. Detailed specifications of HZ-14 are
given in Appendix A. To provide uniform temperature
distribution across the face of the module aluminium was
chosen as the thermal spreader between the two faces of the
module and the heat source and sink. The system was @)
designed so that it can be mounted between the exhaust
manifold and exhaust tube, the internal diameters of the Figure 2 (a) Close-up of the Thermoelectric Generator Waste
manifold and thermal spreader were matched to maximise gas Heat Recovery System assembly.
flow, Fig. 2 shows the assembled WHRS mounted on the (b) Complete setup of the TG WHRS mounted to the
engine. Although the system was designed for six modules, exhaust of the Ruston diesel engine.
only four were used in these tests. Four modules were then
mounted on the aluminium thermal spreader, comprising of
three modules on the top & three on the bottom, ensuring a Since the recommended temperature on the hot side for
compressive pressure of 200 psi (1.38 MPa) as recommended continuous operation is 230"C, a suitable position for the
by the manufacturer was applied to the heat source thermal WHRS had to be found on the exhaust tube. This was done by
spreader. Putting the module under this compressive load thermal modelling using SINDUG (Network Analysis, Inc.,
ensures that the module always remains in compression, USA). The boundary conditions for the model shown in Fig. 3
where it is strongest, and it maximises heat transfer across the were determined by estimating the coefficient of heat transfer
interfaces [5]. To achieve the specified temperature of 30°C on inside the exhaust pipe from experimental and published data.
the low temperature side of the modules water-cooled heat The values of the contact resistance between the hot-side
sinks were designed with water supplied from the mains [6]. thermal spreader and the TG module and between the TG
The interface between the module and the heat source and the module and the heat sink were estimated using published data.
interface between the module and the heat sink is a very The model was run repeatedly changing the exhaust
critical component of any TG WHRS design. The surface of temperature until the operating temperature of the hot side of
the module consists of the metallic electrical conductors that the module was obtained. The corresponding thermal spreader
join the 'n' and 'p' elements of the module. To avoid shorting internal surface temperature was found to be 3 12°C.
415 20th International Conference on Thermoelectrics (2001)
With the engine operating close to its rated power, the exhaust
pipe surface temperature, where the WHRS could easily be lndividual Module Power
mounted, was found to be about 285°C. This indicated that the
modules will not operate at the optimum hot side temperature l4 1-
of 230”C, but at 210°C which was subsequently confirmed by I 12-1 *
measurement of the temperatures at different locations in the 10
system during the operation.
@ 8

2‘ 6

I 0 100 200 300

Exhaust Gas Temperature(Tg)
4M) 500 600 70C

I 12
Power Comparison Chart
14 .................................................... ...................................... 45

40

35
Figure 3. Thermal model of the TG WHRS showing one
module.
L
10
30
25
z5
6 2
a
is6 20
-
15
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 4 8
10
2
Module integrity 5

0 0
Module integrity was assessed as follows: 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700

0 The system was operated with the electrical load attached Exhaust Gas Temerature (Tg)
until steady state condition was reached +Module 1 module 2 +Module 3
0 The electrical load was then disconnected and the open +Module 4 ‘lotal Power

circuit voltage recorded (3.26 v). @)

The operating temperature difference and available power
corresponding to this open circuit voltage were
determined using the manufacturer’s operating charts
(180°C and 10.4 W, respectively).
The measured temperature difference and calculated
maximum power generated are (237°C and 12.2 W,
respectively) were compared with the optimum values.
The temperature difference is actually the total
temperature drop including the temperature gradient at the
interfaces.
This process indicated that the two modules positioned on the
upper region of the W H R S produced considerably better
power output to the two modules mounted to the bottom of the
WHRS. This can be seen in Fig. 4@) which shows the power
generated by the individual modules as a function of the
exhaust gas temperature (Tg). Modules 1 & 2 were mounted
on top, whereas modules 3 & 4 were mounted on the bottom.
The maximum power generated per module ranged from 8.2
to 12.2 W and the total power output of the WHRS was
42.3 W.
41 6
Figure 4 (a) Performance characteristic of an individual
Thermoelectric Generation module.
(b) Power comparison of the individual TG modules
and a total power output of the system.
Sample Application
One possible application of TG WHRS is as a replacement
to the alternator in a car. Electrical loads in motor vehicles can
be categorised as continuous loads (ignition, fuel injection,
etc.), long-time loads (lighting, heated rear window, etc.),
short-time loads (turn signals, stop lamps, electric windows,
etc.) and seasonal loads (air conditioners, seat heaters in
winter). The alternator is the source of this power in addition
to the power required to ensure adequate energy storage in the
battery. The alternator is mechanically driven by the engine
and operates at an average efficiency of about 50%. Tests
carried out on a medium family sedan equipped with a 4-
cylinder 2.2 litre engine and 5-speed manual transmission
shows that with no electrical load and full electrical load the
alternator uses up to 2% and 5% respectively of the engine’s
output power without an alternator [6].
20th international Conference on Thermoelectrics(2001)
This indicates that the fuel consumption can be reduced by 2%
to 5% if the alternator is eliminated as the main electrical
power source. To replace the alternator in t h s example
(maximum output of 980 W), 70 HZ-14 modules will be
required arranged in a suitable manner on the exhaust pipe.
At the current price of US$175 per module for small orders
(1-9), the capital cost for a full TG WHRS is still prohibitive
despite the fact that the energy source is free and 2-5% of fuel
consumed by the vehicle can be saved with corresponding
decrease in all pollutants including greenhouse gases. The
price is considerably lower for large orders and it is expected
to come down further with decreased manufacturing costs and
increased demand. Also, there is scope for thermal efficiency
improvement as new materials are developed with higher
values of figure-of-merit. Using equation (4) for a thermal
efficiency of 5%, it was found that the figure-of-merit for the
HZ-14 is Z = 1 . 2 8 ~ 1 0 The
‘ ~ . dimensionless figure-of-merit at
the maximum operating temperature of 230°C (503 K ) is
therefor ZT =0.643. Bismuth telluride is considered to be the
best thermoelectric material currently available with a ZT
value of 1. For a figure-of-merit of Z = 1 . 2 8 ~0-3
1 the required
hot side temperature is 780 K, which yields a thermal
efficiency of about 11%. This is the maximum theoretical
efficiency for bismuth telluride; however, the manufacturer’s
recommended hot-side temperature is 300°C (573 K ) for
continuous duty and 400°C (673 K ) for intermittent duty. The
value of ZT required to achieve thermal efficiencies
comparable to the thermal efficiency in internal combustion
engines (30%) for the temperature difference recommended
for the HZ-14 is about 42.5! However, such high ZT values
are not necessary to make the use of thermoelectricity cost
effective as long as the cost of the modules are reduced
significantly.
Researchers have been unable to improve upon the value
ZT = I for a prolonged time and there is speculation that this
could be a limit imposed by nature despite the fact that there
doesn’t seem to be any theoretical limitation. Research is
continuing with promising new thermoelectric materials such
as skutterudites and quasicrystals [7].
CONCLUSIONS
The research conducted on the low-power stationary diesel
engine has demonstrated the practical viability of recovering
medium-temperature waste heat by means of TG WHRS.
The TG WHRS performance utilising only four Hi-Z 14
modules were evaluated, obtaining the following results:
0 The measured temperature difference and calculated
maximum power generated are (237°C and 12.2 W,
respectively) were compared with the optimum values.
The temperature difference is actually the total
temperature drop including the temperature gradient at the
interfaces.
0 The maximum power generated per module ranged from
8.2 to 12.2 W and the total power output of the WHRS
was 42.3 W.
41 7
The WHRS developed can be applied to any type of engine
provided that the required hot-side temperature was available.
Similar waste heat recovery systems can be applied to any
thermal plant producing waste heat such as gas turbines,
furnaces, steam power plants. The system can become cost
effective with reduced cost of TG modules and development
of new thermoelectric materials with higher value of figure-of-
merit. In addition to element figure of merit other various
factors must be taken into account when designing a WHRS
such as the location of the generator, heat transfer from
exhaust gas to thermoelectric modules, thermoelement
stability, environmental friendliness. In the application of a
transportation vehicle the WHRS’s mass should be considered
because to attain an increase in fuel efficiency the additional
weight of the WHRS must not be so great as to cancel its fuel
saving benefits.
REFERENCES
[l]. Bennett, G.L. Space Applications, CRC Handbook of
Thermoelectrics, ed. M.M. Rowe, p 515-537, 1995.
[2]. Goldsmid, H.j. Conversion Efficiency and Figure-of-
Merit, CRC Handbook of Thermoelectrics, ed. M.M. Rowe, p
19-25, 1995.
[3]. Krutov, V.1 (ed.) Technical Thermodynamics (in
Russian), Vishaya Shkola, Moscow, 1971.
[4]. Haywood, J.B. Internal Combustion Engines
Fundamentals, McGraw-Hill, 1988.
[5]. Leavitt, F.A., Elsner, N.B., Bass, J.C. Use, Application
and Testing of HZ-14 Thermoelectric Module, Hi-Z
technology, Inc., San Diego, USA., 1995.
[6]. Ellis, S., Ryan, D. Application of Thermoelectricity to
Waste Heat Recovery, Final Year Project, Department of
Mechanical Engineering, Caulfield Campus, Monash
University, 1998.
[7]. Wu, C. A Silent Cool, Science News Online, September,
1997.
20th International Conference on Thermoelectrics (2001)