Heatsinks and Airflow Configurations for Wearable Thermoelectric Generators

A critical challenge in using thermoelectric generators (TEGs) for charging portable or wearable electronics has been limited outputs generated by wearable TEGs, because available temperature difference between human body and environment (ΔText) is typically a few degrees of Kelvins. The power generation from wearable TEGs strongly depends on the characteristics of integrated heat sinks and airflow configurations. Thus, when designing wearable TEGs, the optimization for the internal thermal resistance is necessary considering the large external thermal resistance at TEG–air interface. This chapter presents a theoretical model for designing a TEG when the heat transfer characteristics of heat sink and airflow configuration are given. Experimental data verify the strong dependence of TEG performance on the types of heat sink and airflow configuration.