Compact TPV Generation System Using Al_2O_3/Er_3Al_5O_(12) Eutectic Ceramics Selective Emitters

摘要

The emissive properties of Al_2O_3Er_3Al_5O_(12) eutectic ceramics have been measured as a candidate of selective emitters. It is identified that the Al_2O_3Er_3Al_5O_(12) eutectic ceramics have selective emission bands at the wavelength of 1.5 μm, and the emittance at the emission peak is over 0.8. The selective emissive power for GaSb photovoltaic (PV) cells of 49 kW/m~2 is achieved by this material at 1600 K. Since the emission bands match the sensitive region of GaSb PV cells, the Al_2O_3Er_3Al_5O_(12) eutectic ceramics are suited as emitter materials in thermophotovoltaic (TPV) systems using GaSb PV cells. The optical design of small-scale TPV systems for portable power sources has been investigated with the three-dimensional ray tracing simulation. Using a mirror/PV optical design, the concentrated thermal radiation is irradiated on PV cells with the view factor over 0.75.