Thermodynamic Assessment on the Integration of Thermo-Electric Modules in a Wood Fireplace

The growing demand for electricity produced from renewable sources and the development of new technologies for the combustion of biomass, arose a growing interest on the possible coupling of thermoelectric modules with stove-fireplaces.

The current thermoelectric generators have a solid structure, do not produce noise, do not require maintenance and can be used for the recovery of waste heat or excess, at the same time they hold a very low conversion efficiency and they need an adequate cooling system. Nevertheless, they still hold a cost, which is still too high to make them attractive. Nonetheless, if the modules are applied to a heat source which otherwise would be wasted, the attractiveness of the solution certainly rises.

In this study, a thermodynamic analysis of a stove-fireplace is presented, considering both combustion process and the flame – walls heat transfer of the. A design solution for a concentrator device to funnel the wasted heat from the fireplace to the thermo-electric modules is also presented.