Structure Design and Performance Analysis of <sup>90</sup>Sr Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator

Du Guanghan; Li Yupeng; Li Gen; Guo Rui; Liu Guixiu; Wang Jinshi

doi:10.13832/j.jnpe.2023.03.0104

Volume 44 Issue 3

Jun. 2023

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Du Guanghan, Li Yupeng, Li Gen, Guo Rui, Liu Guixiu, Wang Jinshi. Structure Design and Performance Analysis of 90Sr Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator[J]. Nuclear Power Engineering, 2023, 44(3): 104-111. doi: 10.13832/j.jnpe.2023.03.0104

Citation:

Du Guanghan, Li Yupeng, Li Gen, Guo Rui, Liu Guixiu, Wang Jinshi. Structure Design and Performance Analysis of ⁹⁰Sr Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator[J]. Nuclear Power Engineering, 2023, 44(3): 104-111. doi: 10.13832/j.jnpe.2023.03.0104

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Structure Design and Performance Analysis of ⁹⁰Sr Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator

doi: 10.13832/j.jnpe.2023.03.0104

Du Guanghan^1
,,
Li Yupeng¹,
Li Gen^{1, 2
,
,},
Guo Rui³,
Liu Guixiu¹,
Wang Jinshi¹

1.
State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, 710049, China
2.
School of Electric Power Engineering , South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510641, China
3.
Science and Technology on Reactor System Design Technology Laboratory, Nuclear Power Institute of China, Chengdu, 610213, China

Received Date: 2022-06-07
Rev Recd Date: 2022-07-02
Publish Date: 2023-06-15

Abstract

Abstract

In this paper, a physical model of ⁹⁰Sr radioisotope thermoelectric generator was designed, including the heat source, thermoelectric conversion module and heat dissipation module. On this basis, the finite element analysis of generator was carried out by using the COMSOL, and the temperature distribution, voltage and power output characteristics of generator were obtained. Meanwhile, the output characteristics of generator under the attenuation of the heat source power were studied, and finally the sensitivity analysis of the height and cross-sectional area of the thermoelectric material was carried out. The research results show that the maximum output power of generator is 63.6 W, the thermoelectric conversion efficiency is 7.6%, and the maximum output power of generator is reduced from 63.6 W to 24.4 W within 15 years. Sensitivity analysis found that the internal resistance and maximum output power of generator increase with the increase of the height of the thermoelectric material, and decrease with the increase of the cross-sectional area. The research results are of great significance to the application of radioisotope thermoelectric generator in harsh environments such as space and deep sea.
- Radioisotope thermoelectric generator,
- Thermoelectric conversion,
- Output power,
- Thermoelectric conversion efficiency,
- Sensitivity analysis

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References(12)

References

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