FIBER-REINFORCED THERMOELECTRIC TILE AS AN ALTERNATIVE SOURCE OF ENERGY

ROWEL  S. FACUNLA,

FIBER-REINFORCED THERMOELECTRIC TILE AS AN ALTERNATIVE SOURCE OF ENERGY

Abstract:

Urban heating in modern cities that raises the temperature by 1? to 3? than the ordinary environment temperature due to the presence of high thermal mass materials present within the environment is a phenomenon called the Urban Heat Island Effect. These materials tend to store huge amount of thermal energy resulting to more humid environment temperature. This study proposes a method of reducing urban heating by converting thermal heat energy to electrical energy using fiber-reinforced thermoelectric tiles. The design of these tiles makes use of the concept of flywheel effect. Materials that possess high thermal mass can store thermal energy when the ambient temperature is higher than the material and releases it back when the ambient temperature is cooler. The study aims to convert the stored heat energy in materials to usable energy instead of being released back to the environment. This is accomplished by employing concrete cement mixed with carbon and aluminum fibers that act as n-type and p-type material, respectively, arranged in a way that one side is exposed to high temperature and the other side to low temperature. Result showed that a temperature difference between 15? and 35? can induce voltage and current between 0.75V to 1.80 V and 1.15A to 1.28 A, respectively, for a 305 cm × 305 cm tile. Moreover, result showed that while converting the absorbed heat energy, the ambient temperature cools down faster compared to using typical concrete tiles.