Harvesting electrical energy from torsional thermal actuation driven by natural convection

The development of practical, cost-effective systems for the conversion of low-grade waste heat to electrical energy is an important area of renewable energy research. We here demonstrate a thermal energy harvester that is driven by the small temperature fluctuations provided by natural convection....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports 2018-06, Vol.8 (1), p.8712-7, Article 8712
Main Authors: Kim, Shi Hyeong, Sim, Hyeon Jun, Hyeon, Jae Sang, Suh, Dongseok, Spinks, Geoffrey M., Baughman, Ray H., Kim, Seon Jeong
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
639/301/1005/1006
639/4077/4072/4062
Convection
Energy
Energy research
Fluctuations
Humanities and Social Sciences
multidisciplinary
Muscles
Polyurethane
Renewable energy
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Temperature effects
Thermal energy
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Summary:The development of practical, cost-effective systems for the conversion of low-grade waste heat to electrical energy is an important area of renewable energy research. We here demonstrate a thermal energy harvester that is driven by the small temperature fluctuations provided by natural convection. This harvester uses coiled yarn artificial muscles, comprising well-aligned shape memory polyurethane (SMPU) microfibers, to convert thermal energy to torsional mechanical energy, which is then electromagnetically converted to electrical energy. Temperature fluctuations in a yarn muscle, having a maximum hot-to-cold temperature difference of about 13 °C, were used to spin a magnetic rotor to a peak torsional rotation speed of 3,000 rpm. The electromagnetic energy generator converted the torsional energy to electrical energy, thereby producing an oscillating output voltage of up to 0.81 V and peak power of 4 W/kg, based on SMPU mass.
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/s41598-018-26983-4