New TPV Cells Effectively Convert Heat To Electricity

Image Credit: Felice Frankel

The effects of global warming, which is due in part to our reliance on fossil fuels, has forced the world to expand and develop alternative, sustainable ways of harnessing energy. For example, engineers at MIT and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have created a more efficient way of storing heat without the use of moving parts.

It consists of a thermophotovoltaic (TPV) cell, which is supposed to be similar to photovoltaic cells found in solar panels. The principle behind it is to passively capture high-energy photons from a heat source that can then be turned into electricity. The current system can generate electricity from a heat source with a temperature of between 1,900 to 2,400 degrees Celsius with 40% efficiency.

Researchers want to integrate these TPV cells into thermal batteries like insulated banks of hot graphite. When power is needed, they can convert the heat stored here into electricity that can be transferred to the power grid. Compared with existing TPV designs, these cells have higher-bandgap materials and multiple junctions.

The technology still needs a bit more time before it’s ready to be used as a viable source of energy generation like that of solar farms or windmills. But the results look promising and have the potential to help wean us off our dependence on fossil fuels as our main source of energy.

MIT’s full article and explanation on the technology and the people behind it, can be found here.