Systems/marketing challenges for TPV

Thermophotovoltaic technology has been considered as an electrical power source for many years. The principles have been well documented and demonstration units have shown the feasibility of these TPV systems. One of the major challenges, however, has been the marketing of TPV systems even though a large number of potential applications have been identified. The primary driver for TPV in the past has been a very specialized need for military field generators for special forces, and as a man‐pack battery re‐charger. Because of this limited application, most of the emphasis was on research and little was done to commercialize the systems. Now the situation has changed, and there is a strong tendency to look for new ways to commercialize military systems. This paper will describe some of the emerging TPV markets that are developing both for the government and for commercial applications and how the eventual system design(s) must take these market requirements into consideration.