Ceramic IR Emitter with Spectral Match to GaSb PV Cells for TPV
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Ceramic IR Emitter with Spectral Match to GaSb PV Cells for TPV Lewis M. fraas1 and Kuanrong Qiu2 1 JX Crystals Inc, 1105 12th Ave NW, Issaquah, WA 98027, U.S.A. 2 CANMET Energy Technology Centre-Ottawa, Natural Resources Canada 1 Haanel Drive Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A 1M1 ABSTRACT A high temperature ceramic selective emitter for thermophotovoltaic (TPV) electric generators is described with a spectral match to GaSb IR cells. While solar cells generate electricity quietly and are lightweight, traditional solar cells are used with sunlight and only generate electricity during the day. Workers at JX Crystals invented the GaSb IR cell as a booster cell to demonstrate a solar cell conversion efficiency of 35%. JX Crystals now makes these IR cells. In TPV, these cells can potentially be used with flame heated ceramic emitters to generate electricity quietly day and night. One of the most important requirements for TPV is a good spectral match between the ceramic IR emitted and the IR PV cells. The first problem is to find, demonstrate, and integrate a doped ceramic IR emitter with a spectral match to these GaSb cells. Recently, nickel oxide and cobalt oxide doped MgO-based ceramics have been shown experimentally and theoretically to have spectral selectivity but no attempts have been made to integrate these ceramic IR emitters into a fully operational TPV generator. Herein, we review the history of TPV and note that a key to future progress will be the integration of an appropriate ceramic emitter with cells and a burner to demonstrate an operational TPV generator. Integrating TPV into a residential boiler is discussed as a potential future large volume commercial market. INTRODUCTION Fuel fired TPV generators have 4 very interesting features. First, they have very high power densities and this makes the PV cells affordable. For example, with an emitter temperature at 1200 C, the cell electric power density can be over 1 W/cm2, 100 times higher than a traditional solar cell operating in sunlight. Second, they are very light weight. For example compared to a Li-ion battery, one TPV power system described previously is lighter, has much higher specific energy, operates longer, and is very easily refueled. Third, these generators are quiet because the burn is continuous, and finally, fourth, a large number of hydrocarbon fuels can be used. The light weight and quiet features make these units interesting to the military for lighter batteries for soldiers or for power and propulsion systems for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The high power density, quiet, and fuel adaptability features make these TPV units suitable for combined heat and power in home and industrial applications. After a review of TPV historical developments and given GaSb TPV cells at JX Crystals (JXC), this paper will focus on integrating these IR cells with a spectrally matched IR ceramic emitter to allow commercially viable TPV systems. TPV Historical Background TPV was first demonstrated by HH Kolm at MIT Lincoln Labs [1] in 1956 when he placed a rece
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