Wear A Thermoelectric Calorie Harvester (WATCH)

Background:

• Most of the energy leaves our bodies in the form of heat simply due to existing temperature gradients in the environment. An average human body at rest emits about 350,000 J of energy per hour, which is roughly equivalent to the energy given off by a 100-Watts incandescent light bulb. The average surface area of the human skins is 1.7 m^2 (or 17,000 cm^2). This gives a total heat flux of approximately 5700 μW/cm^2.
• Given a thermoelectric energy conversion efficiency of 4% at room temperature, one could power health monitoring devices such as accelerometer (10 μW), ozone sensor (150 μW) and electrocardiogram sensor (50 μW) with his or her body heat by covering a skin surface area of approximately 0.044 cm^2, 0.66 cm^2, and 0.22 cm^2, respectively.
• As a matter of fact, the conversion of human-body-heat into electrical energy using a solid-state thermoelectric generator (TEG) sparks interest in creating wearable self-powered mobile electronics and sensors. We, the UCI W.A.T.C.H team, which stands for "Wear A Thermoelectric Calorie Harvester," are dedicated to designing wearable thermoelectric devices powered by human body heat!

Goal: Harvest latent body using the fundamental concepts of thermoelectric and heat transfer.

Objectives:

• Explore the energy conversion process through Thermoelectric Generators (TEG) on converting low-grade body heat into electrical energy for a wearable sleeve with LED patterns featuring "UCI". This product will serve as a memorial for UCI students.
• Investigate the performance of commercial TEGs through analytical modeling, numerical simulation, and experimental testing.
• Apply fundamental engineering concepts (ex. Heat transfer, Electric Circuit, CAD, Additive Manufacturing) into system designs, packaging, and optimization.

Project Demos: [2019 Fall Design Review]

• https://drive.google.com/a/uci.edu/file/d/18rW0ovjWtZKD2f30Gekwk9e0KdGadHK3/view?usp=sharing
• https://drive.google.com/a/uci.edu/file/d/1hxWuNOxaHihiLBZSIKQ2zwzOCGZgxj04/view?usp=sharing

Exploded View of Current Design: [Thermoelectric Sleeve]

• https://drive.google.com/a/uci.edu/file/d/1XL6R0ZcIrTZzKSL3qLEjw1zBIjjlaMRn/view?usp=sharing

Contacts:

Faculty Advisor: Prof. Jaeho Lee, jaeholee@uci.edu

Student Contact: Sicong Ma, sicongm1@uci.edu

Project Mentor: Jiahui Cao, jiahuic1@uci.edu

(*we are recruiting active members for the 2020-2021 academic year, please contact Prof. Lee and Sicong Ma for more information regarding potential openings*)

Project status: Active

Department: MAE

Academic year: 2020-2021