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Application of exhaust heat dissipation in improving the performance of diesel generators via thermoelectric generator kit accompanied by Cu2O-water nanofluid

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Abstract

Twenty-first century research has always sought to use waste gases from diesel engine exhaust. Exhaust gases from floating diesel engines can be a good source of energy for power generation. The electricity generated by thermoelectric modules can contribute to the generator power of floating diesel generators. The prototypes of thermoelectric generators have been developed and advanced.But there are still issues such as: the thermal stability of thermoelectric materials, proper design of heat exchangers with high heat absorption capacity from the exhaust, and utilizing nanofluids with different concentrations in heat exchangers; needs more studies. On the other hand, utilizing Cu2O nanofluids in thermoelectric generators has not been investigated. In this research, a thermoelectric generator kit model consisting of twenty-four thermoelectric modules is designed and installed on the exhaust (replacing the expansion-expansion tube of a diesel generator) which in their heat-exchangers, water-copper oxide (Cu2O) nanofluid is used for more cooling. The functional parameters of the thermoelectric generator kit in open and closed electrical system as a function of nanofluid volumetric concentration are studied. The innovation of the kit is the compact rectangular design of a thermoelectric generator kit with aluminum blocks as water and Cu2O-water nanofluid at 0.2% volume concentration coolers, which is integrated with the regulator and rheostat circuit to achieve the maximum generating capacity of the generator. The results are plotted as graphs of voltage, current, generating power and thermal efficiency in terms of different engine speeds and different temperature differences and different volumetric flow rates of the cooling fluid in both open and closed circuit modes. The results revealed that in open circuit mode; as the temperature difference applied to the sides of the modules increases, both the open circuit voltage and the short circuit current increase almost linearly. In the maximum temperature difference, the open circuit voltage and short circuit current for nanofluid cooling with 0.2% volume concentration compared to the water cooling has increased by 6.1 and 5.4%, respectively. In closed circuit mode (active rheostat); as the ratio of load resistance to modulus resistance increases, the current to maximum current ratio decreases, the voltage to maximum voltage ratio increases, and the power to maximum power ratio has an optimal state for water cooling and Cu2O-water nanofluid cooling. In addition, when the hot side of the thermoelectric modules is 185 °C, with the increase in volumetric flow rate from 2 to 4 L min−1, the open circuit voltage increases from 34.9 to 39.1 V, and the value of the short circuit current increases from 6.6 to 7.2A. Also at engine speed of 1300 RPM and volumetric flow rate of 2 L min−1, By adding 0.2% volume concentration of nanoparticles to water in cooling system of thermoelectric kit, the maximum power output is increased by about 9.5%.

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Acknowledgements

The authors like to thank Dr Shapour Ebrahimi and Dr Hamed Samdakiri for their assistance (reviewing and editing) of the paper.

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  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Imam Khomeini Marine Sciences University, Nowshahr, Iran

    Abbas Zarenezhad Ashkezari, Rasool Karimi & Iman Abbaspour

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  1. Abbas Zarenezhad Ashkezari
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Correspondence to Abbas Zarenezhad Ashkezari.

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Ashkezari, A.Z., Karimi, R. & Abbaspour, I. Application of exhaust heat dissipation in improving the performance of diesel generators via thermoelectric generator kit accompanied by Cu2O-water nanofluid. J Therm Anal Calorim 149, 2499–2520 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-023-12807-9

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