Abstract:

With the global concerns on energy and environmental issues, various approaches of energy harvesting have been explored. As a solid state energy generator, Thermoelectric Generators (TEGs) can convert the temperature gradients to electrical voltage, thus recovery the energy from vehicle exhaust heat and increase overall efficiency. Recently a new industry-scalable thermal spray process has been extended for the integrated manufacturing of thermoelectric generators on the exhaust pipes directly. This paper is to provide a timely review of the state-of-the-art on thermoelectric materials and thermal spray fabrication process for the
applications of vehicle exhaust heat recovery. They can also be used for energy harvesting in the power plants, manufacturing processing, and many others.