Development of a Small Solar Power Generation System based on Thermoelectric Generator

Attentions have been paid to wide use of the natural energy while problems such as depletion of the fossil energy, control of greenhouse gases and risk caused by atomic power are faced. In this paper, we aim to realize a small solar power generation system by using solar heat based on thermoelectric generation principle. During the research, firstly, the amount of solar radiation at Fukuroi area where our university is located is calculated. Secondly, a small parabolic collector is used to collect the light and the heat. Thirdly, a thermoelectric generator is designed and manufactured inside which 4 Petier modules are employed. Then, by amounting the thermoelectric generator to the focus part of the parabolic collector, an experiment testing the electricity generation performance of the solar power generation is carried out. It is found that the open voltage reaches 3.9 V when the temperature difference is 40 degree.