Energy Harvesting System from Household Waste Heat Employing Thermoelectric Generator

With the increase in global warming and the depletion of the renewable sources of energy, the urge to shift towards alternate and green sources of energy has elevated. Extensive research in the field of greener sources of energy has led to the advancement of thermoelectric generators (TEG) to convert the household waste heat into electrical energy thereby shifting our concerns from conventional to exceptional ways. About 70% of the total energy generated by an internal combustion engine (ICE) cannot be converted into mechanical energy but disperse into the atmosphere as waste heat. To reduce CO2 emission and reduction in energy consumption is becoming an important issue nowadays. Most of the waste heat is dispersed by automobiles, industries, and chullas. More than 67% of rural household in India still cook their meals using wood burning heat devices known as biomass stove or Chula. These Chullas produce a large amount of heat to cook the meal which is exhausted in the environment. The idea is to use the waste heat from household and convert it into the voltage that can be used in various forms leading to a clean environment and reducing carbon footprint in households.