Development of micro-thermophotovoltaic power generator with heat recuperation

A high and uniform wall temperature distribution is desirable for Micro-TPV system application. In this work, numerical simulation combined with experimental test is conducted to study the combustion of hydrogen–air mixture in a microcylindrical combustor with and without a heat recuperator. The results indicate that the temperature distribution along the wall of the micro combustor with a heat recuperator is more uniform and the mean wall temperature is increased by up to 123 K compared to that without a heat recuperator. A micro-TPV system is also prototyped and the performance is tested under various operating conditions, and the results indicate that the electrical power of the system is significantly increased for the micro-TPV system with a heat recuperator. When H2 flow rate is 4.02 g/h and H2/air equivalence ratio is 0.8, the electrical power of the micro-TPV system with a heat recuperator is increased from 0.74 W to 1.26 W, corresponding to an increase of 70%.