HEAT TO ELECTRICITY CONVERTER

In partial fulfilment of the requirements

in Research II for the

Fourth Quarter

by:

JOSEPH ROEL J. MABAJEN

CARL ADRIAN D. SORIANO

IV-EINSTEIN

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Energy is something that is needed for life to exist. Since the beginning of man

energy has become a part of its daily living. Humans eat in order to gain energy for them

to use. And humans had relied in energy for their development.

Humans developed a somewhat “intimate” relationship with electricity. Since the

accidental discovery of Benjamin Franklin of electricity, many scientists sought to utilize

the “god-like” phenomena. With the development of the DC circuit of Thomas Edison

and its subsequent lost to the AC of Nikola Tesla, the world had seen many, abrupt

changes because of electricity. Many inventions were made compared to pre-electricity

era because of its advantages.

We are now currently in the 21st century, and mankind has transgressed from

being mere simple to specie to that of a higher one. We had invented so many things that

aid in our daily living; most are being dependent on electricity. So many “wonders” of

mankind can be found even in our house, ranging from the television sets, radio,

computers, smart phones, and other fancy gadgets. But this had also made humanity

dependent in electricity, using it for leisure purposes rather than using it only when it is

needed.

In order to generate electricity, two types of resources are used, which are:

renewable and non-renewable resources.

A renewable resource is a natural resource which can replenish itself indefinitely.

Renewable resources are extracted from the naturally occurring processes in the

ecosphere and from the Earth itself. Renewable resources are the common sources of

power for renewable energy because of their availability. Mostly, but not all the time,

renewable resources aid the environmental efforts to reduce the carbon footprints

produced through the use of various products because of it not producing chemicals

detrimental to the environment. Renewable resources are commonly used in order to

produce electricity without producing detrimental byproducts.

A non-renewable resource, on the other hand, is a resource that is not “readily

replaced” in a single human life span, and is sometimes called as “finite” resource.

Common examples are fossil fuels, natural gas, and coal. Non-renewable resources are

now being replaced by renewable resources because of their detrimental byproducts that

affect the global ecosphere as a whole.

A thermocouple is a device used in measuring the change in temperature present

in a circuit, and is consisted of two conductors that is positioned at different locations in a

circuit. It produces a voltage when the temperature of the first conductor differs from the

“base” temperature measured by the second conductor. Thermocouples can then be used

to produce small amounts of electricity, if the two conductors are exposed to different

temperature. The researchers would develop a machine that utilizes thermocouples in

order to effectively convert waste heat from frying pans to usable electricity that can

recharge simple dry cell batteries. (http://www.omega.com/prodinfo/thermocouples.html,

2003)

Statement of the Problem

This research aims to answer a general problem: Will the machine gather enough

heat excess and convert it to usable electricity?

Specifically, this research sought to answer the following questions:

1. Will the electricity generated be enough to charge dry cell batteries?

2. Will the heat to electricity converter be efficient in converting and storing

electricity?

Statement of the Hypothesis

The machine would gather enough heat excess and convert it to usable electricity.

The thermocouple used in the machine would effectively convert the collected

heat into electricity.

The electricity generated would be enough to charge small batteries.

The heat to electricity converter would be cost-effective and at the same time,

efficient in converting excess heat into usable electricity.

Significance of the Study

Academe. This research would open up a new possibility in the world of

electronics. By finding a way of collecting heat excess from various materials, and

converting it into a usable of energy which is electricity, this research could be used as a

stepping stone for other studies. Additionally, this research can be used as a guide for

other related studies.

Research. This research opens the room for other students who are finding ways

to convert wasted heat into electricity. If the result of this research turns into positive,

they can use this research and results as a basis for future experiments. The other

researchers can change the variables if they want further investigation about the topic.

They can use other variables such as sound energy and other materials like aluminum and

other alloys.

Environment. As mentioned, it will pave the way for developing a new way of

“recycling” wasted energy. This research can be developed by other researchers to create

a converter that would generate electricity in a much, bigger scale, possibly being used as

replacement to other sources of electricity, with whom use non-renewable resources that

are both destructive to the nature, and detrimental to the health of the local populace.

Economy. The Philippines’ source of electricity mainly consists of importing

natural gas and coal from other countries. Developing this study would result to a product

that can support the consumers’ use of electricity using recycled energy, rather than

producing it from the imported materials. This converter would greatly aid the country’s

shift from using non-renewable source to renewable sources of electricity like

hydroelectricity generators, wind mills, and solar panels.

Importance of the Study

Third world countries like the Philippines rely heavily on fossil fuels, natural gas,

and coal to produce the needed electricity for the population. The reliance to these non-

renewable resources causes detrimental effects to our environment due to the fact that

these resources produce harmful by-products like the chlorofluorocarbons.

A new way of producing and generating electricity using “environmental-

friendly” methods is one of the main goals of environmentalists in this era. By using

thermocouple, individuals can create their own converter to generate their own

electricity. It would be very helpful to have an alternative source of energy in a

developing country like ours.

Scopes and Limitations

This research covers only the production of a heat to electricity converter. The

materials are limited only to the products available in the locale. The research also

tackles the possible benefits of the converter in terms of cost and efficiency. The

researchers limited the studies to only using excess heat as the base energy source, and do

not involve other types of energy as a source for the conversion. Lastly, it does not tackle

about the amount of energy that is required to be collected in order to produce electricity

enough for household appliances to use.

Definition of Terms

Thermocouple– a sensor used for measuring temperature differences in a circuit; the

difference in the temperature causes the production of small amount of voltage.

Converter- a device that aids in the process of changing one form of energy to another.

Renewable Energy - energy that comes from resources which can be described as

“infinite” and can be used indefinitely such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves and

geothermal heat.

Non-renewable Resource- a resource that does is not replaced, or in other cases,

replaced in a slow rate by natural processes.

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

As the gadgets and machines that we humans use efficiently work, heat is

produced and this is called the wasted energy. According to a research in Massachusetts

Institute of Technology, the wasted heat produced by computer processors, car engines,

electric power plants and etc. might be harvested and converted to usable electricity. This

way of harvesting of wasted energy might lead to the longer battery life of mobile phones

and laptops. According to Hagelstein, a principal investigator in the Research Laboratory

of Electronics, with present systems it is possible to efficiently convert heat to electricity

and it is also possible to get plenty of electrical power or high-throughput power. Such

devices are still being developed and a few years away from commercial availability.

(http://www.gizmag.com/mit-research-harness-waste-heat/13404, 2009)

It is not an easy proposition to turn a source of heat such as concentrated sunlight

into useful electrical power and there are a lot of options such as thermal engines using

different thermodynamic cycles, photovoltaic arrays, thermoelectric and thermionic

conversion. The space current or the build-ups of electrons mutually repelling each other

and chocking the flow of current is previously is the cause of the efficiency limitations of

thermionics such that the new system uses external electric or magnetic fields to keep the

electrons going in the right direction. This new system promises a high portion of the

Carnot Limit, the measure of how much useful work can be extracted from a thermal

cycle, can be converted directly to electrical energy. A problem is the efficiently losing

excess heat to maintain the temperature differential that drives the system. Given the right

heat pipes, the whole system can be built without moving parts. (http://crowlspace.com/?

m=20130118, 2013)

Heat is traditionally used to power up turbines that generate electricity by the

production of steam. However, when fuel such as fossil fuels is burned at power plants to

generate electricity, about 3/5 or more of the energy is lost which we call the wasted heat.

The Northwestern University came up with a device that can convert the waste heat to

electricity. The conversion rate is called ZT and traditionally, the ZT conversion has been

only 1 which means that the scientists get only the same amount of energy as they put

into the system. As their work continued, they were able to achieve 1.8 ZT, 2.2 ZT, and

2.5 ZT with possibilities of reaching 3 ZT.

(http://ecatreport.com/new-energy-news/conversion-of-heat-into-electricity, 2012)

Whenever we use any gadget or any other machines, these devices consume

energy in order to work efficiently. But the energy is not fully consumed by these

devices; some of the energy is lost in the form of friction or heat. When this wasted

energy is ingeniously harvested, the use of cellular phones, laptops and other known

gadgets may be doubled thus eradicating the need of frequent charging and reducing their

wear and tear or the damage that naturally and inevitably occurs as a result of normal

wear or aging. Hagelstein and Yan Kucherov carried out experiments by going for a

different technology other than the Carnot Limit which is the formula for determining the

utmost efficiency that any machine can achieve in converting heat into work and they

have achieved the efficiency of 2/5 of the Carnot Limit with a possibility of ultimately

reaching 9/10 of that ceiling. Hagelstein stated, “There’s a gold mine in waste heat, if you

could convert it. A lot of heat is generated to go places, and a lot is lost. If you could

recover that, your transportation technology is going to work better.”

(http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/waste-heat-battery-life-laptops-cell-phones,

2009)

In the process of producing materials such as glass and steel, a huge source of

energy also known as the wasted heat is lost into the surroundings. This excess heat is

often been recaptured to warm associated buildings however, this industrial waste heat

may be used for greater purposes other than heating and one of these purposes is using

this waste heat to produce electricity. The Tufts School of Engineering’s Renewable

Energy and Applied Photonics Laboratories conducts research on a technology called

thermophotovoltaics to convert heat into electricity. Currently, in order for

thermophotovoltaics to work, the excess heat has to be in 1000°C which is only

applicable in processes such as the production of glass and steel which needs heat not less

than 1575°C and 2300°C, respectively in order to be in a molten state. Now, one of their

projects involves extending the operating range of these thermophotovoltaic devices,

giving them the ability to convert lower-temperature heat sources as well as converting

the higher-temperature sources more efficiently.

(http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/articles/harvesting-heat-converting-

waste-heat-usable-electricity, 2012)

The researchers in Germany and US developed a new type of thermionic

generator that turns heat or light into electrical energy. This new design overcame the

space-charge problem which plagued previous attempts at developing practical devices

and is about four times more efficient than previous generators. Thermionic generators

convert heat or light into an electric current by using the temperature difference between

two metallic plates that are separated by a vacuum. This creates a charge difference

between the two plates, which can drive a usable electric current. The team is now

working to increase the efficiency of its generator design in two ways: first, it is building

high-performance converters from existing semiconductor technologies and second, it is

optimizing its electrodes through the use of new materials, especially oxides, and

nanotechnology. (http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2013/dec/09/new-generator-

creates-electricity-directly-from-heat, 2013)

Thermocouples involve generating electricity from heat in a simple way that

moving of parts is not needed. When one end of a copper wire is twisted with one end of

one of two iron wires and the other end of the copper wire to one end of the other iron

wire, twisted junctions are formed. If you heat one of the twisted junctions and attach the

two free ends to a volt meter, a voltage may be measured.

(http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/energy/ question136.htm)

As developing countries like China and India continue to industrialize, the

demand for energy rapidly increases. The need for sustainable clean energy sources is

even greater. Thermoelectricity is a technology similar to wind, solar, geothermal, and

biomass. Thermoelectric generators can convert heat into electricity without the need of

moving parts. These generators can retrieve wasted heat from big things such as power

plants, cars, NASA spacecraft to small electronic devices such as watches and

cellhphones. (http://scifundchallenge.org/firesidescience/2013/10/14/ electricity-from-

heat-thermoelectric-generators-2, 2013)

Some polymers share certain properties with metals, but they behave differently

and these materials are known as semi-metals. Scientists from Sweden, Norway,

Denmark, Belgium and Australia have now taken a closer look at these semi-metallic

polymers and they found out that semi-metallic polymers can be thermoelectric, which

means that their electrical conductivity varies with temperature. The result is that the

thermoelectric polymers can convert heat into electricity. For this to work, however, the

heat must not be too intense, as that would result in the polymers losing their

thermoelectric properties, i.e. the plastic would melt. Thermoelectric materials have been

around for a long time, but they have not been used much, as the high price stands in the

way of any widespread use. (http://sciencenordic.com/plastic-can-convert-heat-

electricity, 2014)

Thermionic conversion is a process that converts heat energy such as light from

the sun or heat from burned fossil fuels to electricity with very high efficiency.

Researchers have been trying for a long time to develop the ideal thermionic generator

but they only had a little luck. Thermionic generators use the temperature difference

between a hot and a cold metallic plate to create electricity. Jochen Mannhart, an

experimental solid-state physicist of the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research in

Stuttgart, Germany stated, “Electrons are evaporated or kicked out by light from the hot

plate, then driven to the cold plate, where they condense.” Manhart also noted, “Practical

thermionic generators have reached efficiencies of about 10 percent. The theoretical

predictions for our thermoelectronic generators reach about 40 percent, although this is

theory only.” (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/12/ 131203105935.htm, 2013)

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

This chapter will discuss what will the researchers need for their experiment, how

will they do their experiment and the safety measures that they should follow in doing the

experiment.

Figure 1.Flow chart of the Research Methodology

Preparation of Materials

The researchers will purchase a set thermocouple through the internet. A plastic

container containing ice would be provided personally by the researchers. A rechargeable

battery, and its charger, was to be purchased in an electronics store located in Victory

Mall, Caloocan.

Assembling of Platform

A round, hollow, metal platform with rubber insulator would be custom made in a

welding shop along 11th Avenue, corner Serrano Street in Caloocan City.

Preparation of materials

Assembling of platform

Testing of the converter

Assembling of the converter

Assessment of the converter

Assembling of the Converter

The thermocouple would be placed in the metal platform that is insulated by

rubber coating. It would be oriented in such a way that if frying pan were placed on the

platform, the thermocouple would touch the rear of the frying pan. The other end of the

thermocouple would be placed in a plastic container with ice. The thermocouple would

then be connected, first to a voltmeter to ensure that current is being produced, then to a

charger to test it.

Testing of the Converter

The machine would be tested for its ability to convert excess heat from the prying

pan into usable electricity. The battery would be used until its energy runs out in order to

know the “life span” of a battery charged using the converter. Three types of pans

(varying size) with the same amount of time being exposed to heat would be used in the

experiment, and the voltmeter readings would be recorded.

R3

R2

R1

R3

R2

R1

R3

R2

R1

Pan 1 Pan 2 Pan 3

Figure 2. The Research Design. It will be needed when the setups were being prepared. In each

group, there were three sub-set-ups. The researchers will get the average of the results of the

three sub-set-ups so that they can get a reliable data for this study.

Assessment of the Converter

The percentage efficiency of the machine will be computed using the formula:

PE= Eekectrical/ Ethermal x 100; wherein Eekectrical is the total electrical energy converted from

the collected heat while Ethermal is the total thermal energy collected from the pans.

Percentage efficiency for the varying temperature of various pans will be computed. The

statistical test that will be used is ANOVA I because the researcher intends to determine

the difference that exists between the multiple groups.

BUDGET

The study will require materials for the assembling of the machine. Presented here

is the estimated amount needed to proceed with the experiment.

a. Materials

Rechargeable Battery Set – ₱ 350

Metal Platform – ₱ 300

Ice - ₱ 20

Thermocouples- ₱ 400

b. Transportation

CCSHS-Raon-CCSHS- ₱ 60 (4 x ₱ 15 for LRT, Back and Forth)

CCSHS-Victory Mall-CCSHS - ₱ 50 (2 x ₱ 25 for tricycle, Back and Forth)

CCSHS-Welding Shop (located near B. Serrano St.)-CCSHS- ₱28 (4 x ₱7 for jeep, Back and Forth)

The estimated amount that the researchers need is ₱1208.

BLUEPRINT