Batteries: thermoelectric and photoelectric – Thermoelectric – Processes
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-21
2001-11-06
Bell, Bruce F. (Department: 1741)
Batteries: thermoelectric and photoelectric
Thermoelectric
Processes
C136S205000, C136S242000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06313393
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to heat transfer and electric-power-generating components containing a thermoelectric device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Compact and light-weight components capable of heat transfer and electric power generation are desirable in a variety of applications and may be especially useful in cooling systems for portable or remote applications.
Protective clothing has been an area of particular interest in the development of compact and light-weight cooling systems. Examples of people in need of protective clothing include workers exposed to hazardous materials, firefighters, police wearing body armor, and military personnel exposed to nuclear, biological or chemical (NBC) warfare agents. The use of protective clothing can reduce substantially the threat from external hazards; however, protective clothing significantly reduces heat transfer from the body, and people wearing protective clothing are susceptible to heat stress, especially in hot environments.
Extensive efforts have been directed toward developing compact and light-weight cooling systems that solve the problem of heat injury to individuals required to wear protective clothing. In “Development of a Double-loop Free Piston Microclimate Cooling System Phase I,” Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, Ohio (1993), W. G. Atterbury describes a battery-powered vapor-compression-cycle based system sized to produce 350 W
T
of cooling for 4 hours weighing 10 kg with batteries representing the bulk of the system weight. In “Energy Efficient Technologies for the Dismounted Soldier,” National Academy Press, Washington D. C. (1997), the National Research Council proposes an engine-driven vapor-compression-cycle manportable cooling system having a projected weight of 9 to 13 kg.
An alternative to the conventional vapor compression cycle are heat actuated heat pumps. Drost et al., in “Miniature Heat Pumps for Portable and Distributed Space Conditioning Applications,” Proceedings of the Intersociety Energy Conversion Conference, vol. 2, pp 1271-74 (1997) estimate that these systems can reduce the weight of a manportable cooling system to between four and five kilograms including heat pump, air-cooled heat exchanger, batteries, and fuel.
Despite these efforts, there remains a need for a cooling unit that is portable, compact and light-weight and yet provides cooling over extended periods.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a heat transfer and electric-power-generating component that utilizes microstructural architecture for enhanced heat transfer. The component includes a heat source, a microstructural heat sink; and a thermoelectric device disposed between the heat source and the microstructural heat sink. During operation, heat flows from the heat source to the heat sink through the thermoelectric device such that the thermoelectric device can convert a portion of the heat flow into electric power. The microstructural architecture allows for extremely efficient mass and thermal transfer and thus can provide high rates of thermal transfer through the thermoelectric device, allowing for surprisingly high rates of thermoelectric power generation from a compact and light-weight component.
The components of the present invention provide numerous advantages over the prior art. In addition to high rates of thermal transfer, in many applications, the inventive component provides advantages such as: durability, portability, superior compatibility and performance in heat actuated heat pumps, ease of construction, few or no moving parts, low cost, low complexity, light-weight, small volumes, and reducing or eliminating the need for batteries.
The subject matter of the present invention is distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of this specification. However, both the organization and method of operation, together with further advantages and objects thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following drawings and description.
GLOSSARY
“Microstructural” means that a component has at least some structural features that have dimensions of 500 micrometers (&mgr;m) or less. The structural features are typically microchannels, having width and/or depth of from 1 to 500 &mgr;m, or troughs having thicknesses of 500 &mgr;m or less.
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“Recent Developments in Microtechnology-Based Chemical Heat Pumps,” Drost et al., Proceedings of 3rd Microreactor Conf. (Frankfurt, Germany), AICHE, DECHEMA, (Apr. 1999).
“Miniature Heat Pumps For Portable And Distributed Space Conditioning Applications,” Drost et al., Proceedings of the Intersociety Energy Conversion Engineering Conference, vol. 2, pp. 1271-1274 (1997). No month given.
“Microchemical Combustor/Evaporator Thermal Processes,” Drost et al., Microscale Thermophysical Engineering, vol. 1, pp. 321-332 (1997). No month given.
Battelle (Memorial Institute)
Bell Bruce F.
May Stephen R.
Parsons Thomas H
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