Review on advancement in solar and waste heat based thermoelectric generator

Clean energy production has become flagship program of all countries as per the agenda of UNFCCC COP-27. Thermoelectric generator (TEG) has become popular candidate for Green energy. This paper reviews the principle of thermoelectricity, developmental history of solar and waste heat-based thermoelectric power generation, thermoelectric hybrid systems, thermoelectric materials (silicon, ceramics and polymers) with conventional, segmented and cascaded arrangement, operating temperature range, figure of merit, popular modeling and simulation tools, environmental impact, future improvements, exploitation of TEGs in various fields starting from low-power applications (wearable devices) to high-power applications (automotive engines and aerospace). This paper also handles performance of various solar concentrators (parabolic dish, Fresnel lens, solar furnace, etc.) with their optical concentration, heat recovery TEG systems and potential of TEG to generate electricity from human body. This review helps the academia, researchers, and industrialist with deep insights into customization of TEG projects in qualitative and quantitative ways before actual realization.