Fuel Displacement Potential of a Thermoelectric Generator in a Conventional Vehicle

This paper evaluates the fuel displacement potential of a Thermoelectric Generator (TEG) device in a conventional gasoline vehicle using vehicle simulation and engine in the loop. A TEG device was modelled in Simulink, to exhibit the thermal and electrical characteristics of such a device. This TEG model was integrated into the vehicle simulation software, Autonomie and evaluated in a real engine – virtual vehicle scenario using Engine in the loop (EIL) technique. The EIL approach was used to evaluate the fuel consumption benefit of TEG under cold and hot conditions. The complete vehicle model was then validated and used to evaluate the impact of the current TEG system on additional drive cycles as well as future TEG systems (i.e. no device temperature limits). EIL evaluation shows a fuel economy gain within the current device of 1% on the US06 cycle. The simulation study will quantify the impact of driving cycles and TEG design on fuel displacement potential.